Time
by Gracie-luu
Summary: It's naive to think that the Wizarding War never reached America.The witches and wizards of Salem are the forefront of the quest for total dominance and they bring with them new levels of cruelty and spite that have never been seen before. However, not all in Salem are on board. The war never arrived in America, it was there the whole time, and some people are trapped in the middle
1. Chapter 1

_Men talk of killing time, while time quietly kills them. _

_-Dion Boucicault_

* * *

_**July, 1970**  
_

Aurora Knight was in no way considered normal. She had come to accept that when she was approximately seven and had since taken it to heart. She liked the looks people gave her when she walked around wearing mismatched socks, or the way they would avert their gaze when she would bounce by, humming to herself loudly. She reveled in the fact that she was, above all else, like no one else in her family in the slightest of ways.

Aurora was unfortunate enough to call Magical Salem home. It was quaint, if you were fond of that sort of thing, and completely controlled in every facet of life. The homes were well kept by the numerous servants that flitted about them blearily. The house wives were impossibly skinny with judgmental stares etched onto their faces perpetually. The husbands donned the flashiest of robes, showing their prominence to everyone they encountered. They were brash, rude, and self-important and their children were, if possible, worse. They acted as if they were entitled to everything and anything they asked for. Although, in Aurora's not so humble opinion, they deserved nothing at all.

All of them were cruel, sadistic, and elitist. They found sick pleasure with bothering the muggles on the other side of the thick wall that divided the two sides of Salem. She had often found the nastier pureblood children throwing things, nasty things, at them when they weren't looking. It was a status symbol to mess with the most muggle children.

They were never punished for it, of course. Their equally disturbed parents claimed it was a form of revenge.

Apparently the wounds of the Salem Witch Trials still ran deep.

Magical Salem was not the town it so desperately claimed to be. It appeared so perfect from the outside; so beautiful and full of promise. Aurora knew it was rotten to the core. She knew it was filled with the worst kinds of people who claimed to be the best.

The families were old and the secrets were older.

As much as she hated Magical Salem, there was an undeniable bright side that kept Aurora from going completely and utterly insane.

Aurora Knight was not the only oddball in the community. Madeleine Steele was just like Aurora. Aurora never witnessed her bothering the muggle children. She was quiet, at best, and reclusive to all of those who weren't in her family. Although Aurora was never very fond of quiet people, Madeleine had always seemed like she was much more than meets the eyes. Aurora had often seen her sitting quietly under one of the many massive trees, reading to herself. She never spent much time, if any, with the other pure blood children. She always did her best to avoid trouble.

Aurora was quite sure the only reason anybody knew who Madeleine was was because of her family name. Other than that, Aurora was positive she would disappear under the nearest rock without anybody really noticing.

Trouble was expected in Magical Salem, and for that, Madeleine Steele was out of the norm.

The Steele family was undeniably the oldest and most prominent family living in Magical Salem. They were ancient money. They had power that spanned far past the borders of the wizarding community in America. There wasn't a single prominent family that didn't know who they were or what they stood for. The patriarch, Philip Steele, was a banker by day. He had inherited the Maelatorma Banking System from his father at a surprisingly young age. Nobody questioned Philip Steele because Philip Steele held the entire communities livelihood in the palm of his powerful hand. Philip was not only an intimidating man in the professional sense. He was tall and well-muscled. He had strikingly blue eyes that never seemed to blink and rich, chocolate brown hair that had only started to grey slightly. Nothing was ever out of place with Philip Steele and he saw to it that the same could be said for his family.

Persephone Steele, or Madame Steele as she preferred to be called by those she thought lower than her, was a cold woman. She had a perpetually bad attitude and disdain for seemingly everything. She, like her husband, commanded power and respect in each room she walked into. She was tall and slight in stature. She never ate much, giving her a small frame with jutting bones. She was always full of manic energy, however, resulting in an odd mix of hatred and pure energy. She never tired of pointing out everyone else's flaws, focusing specifically on her three children. Her eyes never seemed to blink, resulting in her having the look of a very mean, very stuck up owl.

They had been gifted, or cursed, to have three children very early in their arranged marriage. Aurora had thought it was unfortunate that the two of them were allowed to procreate. William, the oldest and most like his parents, Abigail, the middle, and Madeleine, the youngest. Whether by an act of nature or some happy coincidence, the children got progressively less like their parents as they went down the line.

William, never Will or Bill, was just like his parents. His face was like his father's and his personality was like his mother's. A rather unfortunate combination if you asked anybody with the sense and guts to say so. Aurora had thought he was devilishly handsome when she was younger. He had tan skin and bright blues eyes that had everyone around him swooning. It was almost impossible not to think he was handsome. Almost. Most never grew out of their infatuation, resulting in an almost constant stream of giggling girls following him around. No one cared that he was nothing short of deplorable. Except Aurora, that is.

She was quite sure that is she was ever unfortunate enough to be stuck in the same room as him she would rather gouge out her ears and eyes than listen to him ramble on in his own self-righteous view of himself.

Abigail Steele was nothing like her brother. She had long wavy brown hair and large blue eyes. Other than that, however, she shared nothing in common with her parents. She was the nicest, sweetest, and most caring person Aurora had ever met. She was never foul, never mean, and above all else, she didn't hate the muggles on the other side of the wall. She had a knack for making her own sundresses, which she always wore when the weather was nice. She had a whimsical sort of look that was almost unheard of in Magical Salem. The young wizard men always like her for her perceived complacent personality, while the girls always hated her for her beauty.

Aurora, for her part, never found a reason to bother the muggles. They were not so different than her, she imagined. They looked just the same, acted just the same, and talked just the same. She mostly just felt sorry for them for their lack of magic. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to actually do chores the muggle way. The thought made her cringe a little.

The last member of the Steele family was the one Aurora liked the most. Madeleine Steele was almost an exact replica of her mother; strawberry blonde hair, cold blue eyes, and pale skin. She was heavier set than her mother, with more muscles and a stronger air about her. She was short and had softer features on her smooth face. In the physical aspect she was much stronger than her other female relatives. In the emotional aspect, however, Aurora was pretty sure Madeleine had the fortitude of a mouse. She spent the majority of her free time with her sister. The majority of what little free time she had, that is. The children were kept on a strict learning schedule that occupied most of their time.

Strict schooling was expected in Magical Salem.

All wizarding children were taught from a very young age up until it was time for them to go to a magical school. They were taught by their nannies. Most were sent to the Salem Institute for school. It was the closest and most affordable. A select few, the lucky few, were sent to Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While still respected, the Salem Institute pale in comparison to the elite view of Hogwarts. They adored Hogwarts. It was considered to be the best of the best, and in the pureblood mindset, if their kids weren't getting the best, they were failing miserably.

Aurora had watched the children leave when they turned eleven her entire life. She had always envied them. They got to leave. Her family, while not as bad as most, was still appalling to be around. There was no other way to describe them that would do them justice. She had wanted out of Magical Salem as soon as she realized how band living in Magical Salem was. She imagined what it might have been like to live in a place that wasn't so horrible. She imagined she wouldn't have been so weird if she had lived somewhere else. She imagined she was over compensating for something. Perhaps she would have enjoyed her childhood instead of hating it so much.

Aurora did not feel bad for trying to live outside the system to the best of her abilities.

She made it her own personal goal to give everyone in the small community hell every single day. She made a point to never bother Madeleine and her sister, and they never bothered her. She didn't really think they deserved it. They were far too kind and soft spoken to be messed with.

It seemed odd to Aurora that Madeleine and her had never spoken, despite the miniscule side of the community. They were the same age, roughly, but rotated in completely different circles. Aurora, as a general rule, didn't make friends very easily. Aurora had always thought that she and Madeleine would get along famously, despite her terrible ability to make friends.

Aurora came upon Madeleine on day late in the summer before they were both set to go off to school. She was sitting under her tree, reading quietly to herself. She was alone and Aurora had decided it was time they got introduced. As much as she liked to pretend she was better than the town around her, she had grown tired of entertaining herself by making others uncomfortable. She decided she needed a real friend.

Aurora stopped in her spot on the dusty road, looking around her. She scuffed her shoes for a moment before she made way over to the reading girl. She approached her just like she approached everything else; directly and confidently. Aurora walked directly up to her and plopped herself down ungracefully, making sure she was sitting properly in her patchwork corduroy skirt. She pulled her legs up underneath her, folding them neatly before she looked over at Madeleine. She wasn't even fazed by the alarmed look on Madeleine's face. She had seen that look directed at her numerous times before.

"Hello." Aurora said quickly, peering over her large, round, red glasses at Madeleine. They weren't prescription, but she had always liked the bookish look they gave her large eyes. "We haven't met."

Madeleine was eyeing her wearily. She pushed her neatly kept hair over her shoulder, glancing around her in a panicked sort of way. "No." She said slowly, leaning back as far as she could into the tree. Aurora could see her eyes traveling over her face and clothing, taking in the overall look that she was sporting.

"I'm Aurora, but my friends have the privilege of calling me Rory." Aurora paused, an odd look making its way onto her face. "At least they would if I had any."

Aurora snorted, a loud laugh bubbling out of her throat. Madeleine cringed slightly, leaning back even further. "You are the Knight's only daughter, correct?"

Rory didn't even bother to fight the disdain. The speech was so formal, so uptight, it made her feel horribly uncomfortable. It seemed Madeleine was truly a product of her strict upbringing. "The one and only, I'm afraid."

Madeleine looked around her briefly before she finally seemed to lose some sort of internal battle. Being polite was far too important to a Steele for her to ignore Rory outright. "I am Madeleine Steele." She extended out a small hand to Rory, daring to smile tentatively. Rory grabbed it, shaking it so enthusiastically, Madeleine immediately pulled her hand back.

"I know who you are. Everybody knows who you are." Rory said, reaching her hands down to play with the green grass beneath them. She imagined the house elves had been toiling over it all summer to keep the color as brilliant as it was. "I see you every day sitting all by yourself and figured you could use a friend."

"I have no need for friends." Madeleine said before she seemed to realize the harshness of her words. She immediately dropped her book, covering her mouth with her hands. She shook her head quickly, eyes wider than before. "I didn't mean that to be so harsh."

"Yes you did." Rory tore a chunk of grass, throwing it at Madeleine. "But seeing as how we're both about to hop the pond to Hogwarts, you might as well come to terms with the fact that we're stuck with each other."

"I'm not that bad." Rory said, playfully shoving Madeleine. She cringed audibly at the unexpected physical contact. "I promise, Maddie."

"Madeleine." Madeleine corrected, shifting herself up into a straighter position.

"Gesundheit."

"What?" Madeleine blinked rapidly, folding her arms in her lap.

"So, what do you say?" Rory shot her a toothy grin. "Friends?"

Madeleine pursed her lips up as she took in Rory. Her eyes traveled over her clothes, her hair, her posture, before finally settling on face. She looked horribly conflicted to Rory. Her hands wrung themselves together, turning her knuckles white. Her foot tapped against the soft grass. She could feel the heat of the July sun beating down on her through the gaps of the leaves as Madeleine weighed her options. She could see Madeleine wearing down in front of her. It wasn't as if she was capable of doing any real lasting damage. Madeleine had no real reason to say no.

"I suppose." Madeleine said slowly.

"Atta girl, Maddie." Rory pushed her again. Madeleine immediately tensed up once again.

"Madeleine."

"Vous bénisse."

"What?" Madeleine asked, eyeing Rory warily.

"It's just that your name is so long."

Rory could tell Madeleine was instantly regretting her decision as she looked at Rory. Rory knew she was often talked about by the more upper class members of society. She could only imagine the nasty things they said about her and her mother. Rory was quite sure Madeleine was going all of those things in her mind. She could see it on her face.

Rory was the town loon. She went against the grain in Magical Salem. Nobody went against the grain in Magical Salem. Madeleine knew that better than anybody.

Magical Salem was the oldest magical town in all of the United States of America. It showed in its everyday operations. The homes were fabulously built with stone and marble. The oldest money resided in those houses. They were immaculately kept by staffs that were so baffling in size it was a wonder things ever went wrong. The wall that kept the sides of Salem separated was pristinely kept and cared for by the local boys as part of their raising. The bushes were all kept nice and neat, and the lawns were never over grown. The animals never made noise and the children never played too loudly.

It was beautifully quiet and wonderfully peaceful.

Salem was entirely proud of its status in the wizarding world. It was heralded as the birth of American sorcery. It was iconic. It was timeless. The streets looked the same as they did when it was first founded. The dirt still crunched under their feet like it had for hundreds of years. They still celebrated, ironically of course, the Salem Witch Trials. Rory knew it was all a façade.

Behind every smiling face there was a dark secret waiting to come flying out. Whether it was the scandalous affairs with the local bookkeep, or the money woes that everybody was so embarrassed of, they all had a secret they fought to keep hidden. The secrets were all anybody had. The friendships would crumble if they came out. Some were better at keeping secrets than others. The Knights, for instance, were absolutely wretched secret keepers.

Stella Knight, was not, as she portrayed, Stella Knight originally. Her marriage to Quincy Knight was her second, and for that she was looked down upon.

Mrs. Happencloust was not an expert on herbology, as she liked to pretend. In fact she got all of her knowledge from books and other people before writing it off as her own.

Mr. Poultier was having a sordid affair with the cleaning lady in his house.

Those secrets paled in comparison to those kept by the wealthy elite. They, while not shy, were quite sneaky about their dark inner workings. They held the power and money, and therefore, were untouchable.

They were all untouchable and they lived like they were.

The parties were extravagant and vapid, just like the men and women who attended them. The children bragged about the new toys and stuff they received to each other like it truly mattered. The young ladies fought to catch the attention of the young bachelors. And the young men plotted in secret. It seemed that despite the fact that Magical Salem found itself in the new day and age, the old ways were still present. The hatred of muggles was still there. The hatred of the poor was still there. The hatred of everything considered lower class was still there.

And the Steele's were at the forefront of that undeniable hatred.

Rory knew Madeleine was not blind to the way her parents lived their lives. They bragged about it to everyone who would listen. Rory knew they were involved in the things happening in Europe. It was always the same thing, not matter who they were around. They talked about a new day for the wizarding world. A new day for the purebloods and their way of living. The misgivings in Magical Salem were few and far between. They knew the status quo and stuck to it like it was life and death. The witches and wizards knew who they were and what their place was in the world.


	2. Chapter 2

_Time is the school in which we learn, time is the fire in which we burn. _

_-Delmore Schwartz_

* * *

_August, 1970_

The day the letters arrived from all of the wizarding schools was always a day of massive celebration for some and a day of intense mourning for others. Only a select few got letters from Hogwarts, making them the talk of the town. It was an undeniable status symbol and honor for a child to receive a letter to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and only the oldest of families received that honor. All of the rest were left with the only option of sending their children to the Salem Institute.

Madeleine, along with all of the rest of the pureblood children her age, had expected to receive her letter. Her mother and father had been prepping her to attend Hogwarts ever since she was old enough to comprehend words more complex than 'mother' and 'father'. The possibility of her not receiving her letter wasn't even a possibility at all. The Steele's made it a point to donate rather generously to all the right families and be at only the right parties in order to ensure their children's continued acceptance to Hogwarts. If there was a high society event, the Steele's were present, and more often than not, the undeniable center of attention.

It was for that reason, among other more personal reasons, that Madeleine was not particularly enthused, surprised, or excited when the tell-tale owl came fluttering into her second story bedroom window. It landed gracefully on the top of her ornate dresser, hooting at her for a moment before she finally hauled herself out of bed and went to retrieve the letter. She had seen the letters that her brother and sister had received so many times before that seeing her own brought her no feelings of overwhelming excitement what so ever. It was a little sad, she mused to herself dryly, as she mulled the thick envelope over in her hands. It felt heavy and weighty. It felt official. Her father had kept the letters both of her older siblings had received in a glass case for all to see, including Madeleine's now.

It had been made abundantly and inescapably clear that her own letter had better join theirs in the glass case. Her father was never the type to outright and forthcoming with his threats to his children, but his meaning was made clear all the same.

She wouldn't be a proper Steele if she hadn't been invited to Hogwarts.

Madeleine picked up her heavy letter, running her fingers over the ornate red wax seal for a moment before she had made her way to her father's study. The hallways were familiarly quiet, with only sounds being her small, Mary-Jane clad feet clicking along the wood floor. Her family had been waiting for her letter to arrive ever since she had turned eleven a couple of weeks prior. They had been asking about it at every awkward family meal, demanding to know if she had received it yet.

Part of her birthday celebration had been her impending acceptance to the prestigious school of magic.

Philip Steele didn't congratulate her on her getting her letter. He merely nodded to her for a moment from behind his desk before standing up and taking the letter from her. He separated the shopping list, handing it back to her roughly, before taking the actual letter part and putting it in the glass next to William's and Abigail's.

The rest of her family was a little more responsive to her news. Abigail hugged her enthusiastically, whispering words of congratulations into her ear when nobody was listening when she found out that Madeleine had gotten into Hogwarts. William patted her roughly on the top of her head briefly, offering her one of his practiced smiles, before rushing out of the house to go spend time with some of his creepier friends. Her mother, in an appallingly rare moment of affection, gave her a brief hug and pat on the back before moving on with her scheduled day.

The atmosphere in Magical Salem on the days the letters came streaming in by owl was always a tense and uptight one. The class divisions were never as pronounced and prominent as they were on the Letter Day, as it had come to be called by those who lived in Magical Salem. The rich never missed a chance to rub it in the poor's faces that their children got a letter and the others didn't. The poor never failed to gossip viciously about those 'bratty rich snots' who didn't deserve to wipe the mud off their shoes, let alone go to Hogwarts. The Steele's took a particular, sick joy in rubbing the fact their children were now tenth generation Hogwarts students.

AS always, there were some surprises that came in addition to the expected acceptances to Hogwarts. For instance, no one, except for Rory herself, expected Aurora Knight to be accepted to the prestigious school The Knight's, according to the majority of the prominent families in Magical Salem, had all but lost their prestige and standing.

They were considered to be the joke of the entire community, and it was surprisingly easy to see why.

Stella Knight, the matriarch of the small disbanded family, often claimed to be a seer with a particular emphasis on corporal beings that were around them but not seen. She was often caught in the middle of the night frolicking about town, dressed only in her nightie or nothing at all, claiming she was on the hunt for magical creatures. During her days she spent her constant free time picking plants for some of her more colorful dinner recipes. The smell from her ruddy kitchen could be smelt for miles it was so bad. She wore her greying blonde hair in long braids down her back, coloring the tips with her wand odd colors. She never wore matching clothes, opting instead to don the oddest attire she could possibly get her hands on. In most communities she would be considered endearing and eccentric. In Magical Salem, she was considered nothing short of utterly insane.

And unfortunately that reputation extended over to Rory.

Rory often liked to say to Madeleine that she was a different sort of crazy than her batty mother. After she had practically forced Madeleine into her being her friend, she had felt the need to share the entirety of her rather extensive family woes. All the way from her uncle Humphrey with the three extra fingers on his left hand, to the grandmother on her mother's side who had killed herself claiming, in a scribbled note that she was escaping from the inferi.

As usual, Madeleine thought Rory shared far too much for her own good in Magical Salem.

And as usual, Rory ignored this comment completely and went on her with her stories more often than not.

Madeleine was always unfailingly polite when it came to Rory, as she honestly couldn't find a reason to dislike the eccentric girl, and she often found herself genuinely liking the stories she would tell. She still made her terribly uncomfortable, which Madeleine informed her of on a regular basis, but even she could see having a friend as out outgoing and funny as Rory might be good for her in the long run and grand scheme of things.

Madeleine was horribly uptight, as much as she liked to pretend otherwise, at the best of times and terribly shy. She never liked to spend too much time outside of her home or Rory's crapped bedroom because in all honesty she wasn't exactly sure how to function with people who weren't her family or Rory. Rory did her best in the two months that they were friends before they went to Hogwarts to make a point of forcing Madeleine to do stuff that was entirely out of her comfort zone. It usually didn't work, but on the rare occasions it did, Rory was entirely proud of herself.

It wasn't very often that someone got the chance to change a Steele and Rory took that opportunity at every chance she got.

In terms of steadfast stubbornness, the Steele's ranked number one.

From the time Alphard Steele immigrated to the United States in 1804, which is a fact that everyone in the community was reminded of almost daily, the Steele's had been so steadfast in their ways that it was almost astounding they didn't crack under the pressure of keeping up the traditions in their family. Madeleine, as she still insisted on being called, didn't seem to place much importance on the Steele family history. When she had received her letter she hadn't been excited, like Rory had, and she still wasn't excited about going to Hogwarts. She was just excited about the opportunity to learn a bit of magic from someone that wasn't her uptight mother. Rory for her part was just excited to get out of the vortex of awfulness that was Magical Salem.

Madeleine had secretly confided in Rory that she would have been just as happy going to the Salem institute, a fact that would have gotten her flogged by her parents if they ever found out.

That was the first secret she ever shared with Rory. The first time she had fully trusted Rory with some information that wasn't trivial or superficial in nature. She had let it slip one of the afternoons they spent in Rory's room, pouring over the books Stella kept, laughing at the ridiculousness of it all. As soon as she had said it she had looked to Rory to see if she had noticed. She had, but she paid no mind. She merely smiled before pointing a particularly ridiculous entry about something called a wrackspurt. Neither of the girls was terribly surprised by the fact that they shared secrets with each other. In Salem secrets were about as common as oxygen and just as vital to the survival of the town.

For without the secrets, the housewives would wither without their self-importance and the husbands would no longer have power over their so called friends.

Without the secrets, nobody was sure if Magical Salem would even exist at all.

* * *

The day that all of the children were destined to go to school, whether across the ocean or not, was always a huge fanfare of events. It was an unspoken competition, of sorts, to see who could and would send their child off in the most lavish and stylish of ways. It was not uncommon to see a child being gifted with racing brooms or horrendously expensive wizarding robes. In Madeleine's case, she received an obviously expensive new set of ink and quills as well as a monogrammed stationary kit that were of the highest quality. In Rory's case, she received a handmade necklace with some muddy stones on it. She unlike most of the bratty people in the community, had the decency to put on the grubby necklace before she left with the students heading off to school.

The only member of the Steele family that had been able to accompany Madeleine to King's Cross Station was her sour father. He had taken her by side along apparition, deeming it the house elves jobs to take care of her trunk and other personal property. He was always quiet when it was just the two of them, opting to keep to himself in stony, resounding silence. He was not one for overly emotional moments and this time was not different from the rest. He wasn't proud of his daughter for getting into Hogwarts because that was what he expected of her from the time she was born.

He walked with her thought the station, not bothering to say a single word to her. She could see him shooting ill0disguised looks of hatred at the muggles that passed them by. It was all Madeleine could do to keep herself from melting in embarrassment at his elitist attitude. They didn't notice it, but she surely did. She always noticed the hateful looks her parents perpetually sported when they were forced to associate with the muggles of the rest of the world. Madeleine was quite sure they would have been happy if the whole lot of them would have just disappeared entirely. He held his face in a permanent scowl as they walked through, only lessening it when he came across someone he knew from work or the social scene.

Madeleine had grown up hearing stories and tale about the entrance to Platform 9 3/4 for her entire life, so when she finally arrived at it, she wasn't alarmed in the slightest to run through the seemingly solid barrier. She had done it before when her sister and brother had gone to school. She watched as the muggle born children debated back and forth until they finally mustered up the courage to run through. She also watched as her father scowled at them from behind his thick, brown eyebrows.

The only time she saw her father crack a smile throughout the entire ordeal was when a very tall man, almost taller than Philip, came striding up to them with a very large smile on his tan face.

Madeleine had been doing her best to find Rory in the mass of people gathered in the small train station when she felt her father grabbing onto her shoulder. He forced her around to his side, drawing her attention to the man that was now standing in front of both of them.

He was intimidating to say the least. He had slicked back, jet black hair with small streaks of silver on his temples and steely grey eyes that seemed a bit too large for their sockets. He wore one of the finest muggle suits Madeleine had ever seen and carried an air about himself that screamed power and old money.

"Orion." Her father greeted smoothly, extending a large hand out to the well-dressed man in one swift motion. "It is always good to see you."

"You as well Philip." The man said, shaking his hand quickly before he noticed Madeleine standing closely up against her father's side. He peered down at her for a moment, eyes taking in her slightly alarmed look before he spoke, still keeping his gaze on her. "This must be your youngest."

"Ah yes. This is Madeleine." He pushed Madeleine forward slightly, shooting her a stern look. "She is just starting at Hogwarts this year."

Orion extended a massive hand down to Madeleine. She grasped it carefully, noting the fact that he could probably break her hand with one tight squeeze if he wanted to, before she shook it carefully. "I am surprised I haven't had the pleasure of meeting you before, Madeleine." He said simply, standing back up to his full height after releasing her small hand.

"An unfortunate combination of circumstances I am afraid." Philip said, adding a small laugh for good measure.

"My oldest," The man paused looking around the train station for a moment before he finally stopped scanning. "Sirius!" A boy about Madeleine's age looked around suddenly, surprise written all over his face. Even from her spot across the room she could see that he was impossibly taller than her and mature looking. "Come here." The man looked back over at Philip, an angry look on his face. "My oldest is starting as well."

The boy took his sweet time making his way over to the three of them. He eyed Madeleine for a moment before turning up to look at his father.

She had been right in her assumption that was he tall. He dwarfed her, even though he was only eleven, making her feel impossibly small. His hair, which was just as dark and thick as his father's hung haphazardly in his tan face, covering up a pair of what she would assumed were aristocratic eyebrows. Everything else about him was. From his high cheek bones to his curved lips. From the way he carried himself to the way his shoulders were already broad for his age. Madeleine couldn't help but blush as she looked at him, despite herself.

"I was loading my trunk." He said in a neatly clipped British accent.

"Do not speak to me like that." Orion said in a slightly louder voice than normal. He glared down at his son, anger written all over his face. "This is one of my classmates from school and colleague, Philip Steele and his daughter Madeleine."

Sirius did not look impressed by meeting the Steele's. He merely nodded once before turning back to look in the direction he had come from. He glanced at Madeleine longer than her father, seeming to sum her up for a moment before making up his mind about her. "Can I go finish loading my trunk?" Sirius asked, trying his best to sound respectful. Madeleine had heard that tone of voice about a thousand times coming from her sister and brother. She had always been able to spot false respect better than most, and she had managed to perfect it in her short life to the point where it was almost unrecognizable in her high pitched voice.

"If you must." Orion said, continuing to glare down at his son. Madeleine did not miss the roll of the young boy's eyes as he walked away. As much as he looked like his father with the jet black hair and grey eyes, he acted nothing like him. Even she could tell that from their brief encounter.

Madeleine watched him go for a moment, thinking to herself. She had heard of Orion Black and his family numerous times. She had heard about the power that they held in Great Britain and how it rivaled the power that the Steele's held in the United States. She had heard about both of their sons, deciding a long time ago that she wasn't very interested in being forced friends with more pureblood elitists. She had found she quite liked Rory, and didn't imagine she needed another pureblood spying on her for her parents.

"Madeleine, go take your trunk." Madeleine knew that she couldn't really argue with her father. She reached her small hands down to the edge of her trunk that the house elves had deposited at her side, shooting a glance over at her father before dragging it across the way to where workers were loading trunks. The other students were pushing and shoving in order to get their trunks off their hands sooner. Madeleine recognized a few people from the parties she had been forced to go to, but for the most part she felt like she was in a room full of complete strangers.

Some of them looked so old, with their facial hair and piercings. The girls looked like women with their makeup and developed bodies, making Madeleine feel very small and young instantly. She still hadn't managed to find Rory, and the only person she knew, even by association, was a bratty pureblood with a pension for eye rolling. The thought made her stomach squirm with discomfort.

She deposited her trunk as quick as possible, trying her best to be polite to the people loading the trunks in, before she made her way back over to her father. She was about half way there when she heard her name being called from behind her.

"Maddie!" She looked around wildly, trying to find the source of the voice. "Madpad." She froze instantly recognizing the owner of the voice. It seemed that Rory had picked up the new habit in the short time that they had known each of taking her name and turning it into the most obnoxious nicknames she could come up with. They were truly ridiculous almost all of the time and completely obscure. Madeleine didn't know that what they meant, even on her clever days.

Rory came skidding to a halt in front of her, panting slightly. She smiled widely at Madeleine, throwing her arm around her shoulders. "I saw you getting the world tour of the wealthy elite."

"Comes with the territory." Madeleine said, shrugging her shoulders. She noticed that Rory was still wearing her necklace, earning them both odd looks. Rory understood how it was with the Steele family. It was impossible for them to go anywhere without them running into a family that they knew from some social gathering or another. "That was Orion Black."

Rory looked over Madeleine's shoulder, a smirk appearing on her face. "He looks like I always expected."

"You had expectations?"

"Of course Mad Hatter." Rory said, utterly confusing Madeleine with her words. She had no idea what a Mad Hatter was in the slightest. "I always have expectations. Great Expectations."

"What?"

"It is a muggle novel." Rory said simply, keeping her gaze on the two men conversing a little ways away from them. "He sure looks like a joy. We should go find a compartment before all of the good ones are taken."

"Where's your mom?" Madeleine asked looking around for the older Knight. "Don't you want to say good bye to her?"

"Oh, she's not here." Rory paused, finally looking back over at her friend. "My dad is here though." She gestured over to her very pale, very plump, very blonde father standing awkwardly on the side of the train station. Madeleine had often felt bad for Rory. Her mother was truly a loon who was flighty, at best, and her father was quiet and reserved. Rory didn't fit in in her small family in the slightest and everybody in the entire town knew it. "Anyway, let's go find a compartment."

"Let me go say goodbye to my father." Madeleine said, causing Rory to roll her eyes. "I'll be quick."

Madeleine smiled at her briefly before untangling herself from her friend's arms. She made her way back over to her father, trying her best to avoid being pushed or shoved by one of the many students and parents bustling around the station. Her little black shoes clanked against the ground, causing some people to turn around and look at her. Her mother had insisted, naturally, that she be dressed to the nines when she got on the train to go to Hogwarts. She forced her into a simple blue summer dress before combing her curly hair back with a little black bow. It was safe to say she felt entirely out of place amongst the messy blue jeans and casual sweaters.

She walked up to her father, doing her best not to eavesdrop on the obviously important conversation happening between the two men. Her father was leaning in slightly, whispering fiercely at Orion with his hands clenched together. She could see Orion nodding simply, with his arms crossed over his broad chest. Orion glanced over at her for a moment before turning back to her father. He nodded to him once more before stepping back. He gave her a quick nod before stalking off in the direction of what Madeleine assumed was his son.

Philip looked down at Madeleine for a moment, eyes as cold as ever.

"I trust you understand that you have a family reputation to uphold." He said down to her, fixing her with a very hard look. He didn't sugar coat his words, as Madeleine had grown accustomed to. He went straight to the point.

"I know." Madeleine said quietly. She did know. She had known the entirety of her eleven years that first and foremost she was a Steele. What she did reflected upon the family, and the entire family reflected on her. Her family would be watching her like a hawk the entire time she was away, making sure that she didn't mess up.

"I expect for you to write and tell me what house you are sorted into." He said making his meaning clear. He expected her to write to him and tell him when she was sorted into either Ravenclaw or Slytherin.

"Of course." Madeleine said nodding her head up at him. The train made a loud sound, indicating that it was time for the students to say their final goodbyes. Her father placed his hand on her shoulder before turning her to face the train.

"Have a good term, Madeleine." She knew that was all the tenderness she was going to get from her father, so with a final nod up at him she made her way over to the train. She knew that Rory would find her as soon as she set foot on the train, so she didn't bother to look for her. She glanced back over her shoulder at her father once more, only to find that he had already left, leaving her standing there alone. She shook her head. It shouldn't have surprised her that he wouldn't stick around for the when the train pulled out of the station, but it did.

She made her way over to the train, pushing past the families that were holding each other and crying with hurried 'excuse me's' and apologies. Even though she was entirely used to the lack of emotion in her family, seeing others expressing so much to each other always made her feel incredibly uncomfortable. She wondered what it would be like to have a mother that actually showed she loved her. She wondered what it would have been like to have a father that crushed her in warm hugs.

She shook those thoughts from her head as she stepped onto the train. It was rather useless imagined a Steele being warm.

The train was beautiful on the inside. There was no other way to describe it. It had ornate wood carvings that lined all of the corridors and compartments. It had decorations all along the sides of the hallways, making it look much nicer than any train she had ever been on. The lamps cast a warm glow to the walls and floor, making Madeleine feel already comfortable.

"Maddie, come on." Madeleine looked around to see Rory making her way over to her. She was drawing looks form all sides due to her odd dress and loud American accent. "I already found us some new friends." She paused shooting her a knowing looking over her red glasses. "And we all know you could use some help in that category."

"I have friends."

"I am your first friend in eleven years." Rory said looping her arm around Madeleine's. "While I am an absolute riot, I feel like we need some variety." She pulled her along, peeking into all the compartments as they went before they finally came to one at the end. She pushed open the sliding door with a flourish, before she shoved Madeleine into it with a quick hand to her lower back. It already had two boys in it, both of whom were laughing with each other.

"Can you believe that?" One of them said loudly, causing the other one to laugh in a bark like manner. "To think a girl like Lily was hanging out with a snake like Snivellus. Appalling really if you really think about it."

Rory smirked over at Madeleine for a moment before leading her inside, causing the two boys to look up at them suddenly. Madeleine immediately recognized Sirius Black sitting across from the other boy, laughing loudly. Up closer than she had been in the train station Madeleine could see that he was even more handsome than she had originally thought. He shot her a glance for a moment before turning his eyes onto Rory. He shot the other boy a glance, questioning written all over his face.

"Rory!" The other boy said, jumping up from his seat, causing his circular glasses to go askew. "My mum told me you would be coming to school."

He looked over at Madeleine before turning back to Rory, a questioning look on his face. "Who is this?"

"This is Maddie Steele." Rory said, taking a seat in the compartment. Madeleine couldn't help but hate to hear Rory introducing her with her nickname.

"Ah, a Steele." The boy said, shooting a look over at Sirius. "Join the club, we've already got a Black, Potter," He gestured to himself. "And a Knight."

Madeleine nodding awkwardly, glancing around the compartment before she finally took a seat next to Rory, smoothing out the blue skirt of her summer dress. "I'm James Potter and this is Sirius Black." He shot a look over at Rory.

"How do you two know each other?" Madeleine asked, gesturing between the two of them.

"My mum and her mum were best friends in school." Madeleine looked over at Rory, finding it hard to believe that Stella Knight would be able to maintain any friendships with her neurosis. The woman was barely able to maintain a relationship with the child she had literally birthed. Madeleine found it a little implausible that she would be able to be close with anyone. It seemed that Rory was able to read her mind, as she spoke up laughing slightly.

"'Were' is the key word." She said, pushing her red glasses back up onto her nose. "Now days she can't even maintain a stable relationship with me." Yet again, Rory's knack of sharing too much was showing. The compartment became uncomfortably silent for a moment before Sirius spoke up, drawing the attention away from the uncomfortable line of conversation.

"So, I am guessing your family wants you to be in Slytherin." He was speaking directly to Madeleine. She wasn't used to people asking her such personal questions. With the exception of Rory, nobody in Magical Salem bothered to learn personal things about the others. It just wasn't something that was done. Well nobody bothered to learn personal things that they couldn't use to blackmail them. She smoothed her skirt again out of nervousness that had sprung up seemingly out of nowhere at Sirius gazing at her.

"That or Ravenclaw." Madeleine said simply, keeping her hands and eyes on the edge of her skirt. "It is kind of unacceptable to be in any of the others."

Sirius smirked at her, shooting a glance over at James. "That's what makes it so fun. I would love to see the look on my parents face if I was sorted into any of the other houses. I imagine old Walburga would pop a vein. Wouldn't that be delightful?"

Madeleine couldn't even begin to imagine being in a house besides Ravenclaw and Slytherin. It had been made clear to her that if she wasn't it would not bode well for her when she returned home. Her brother had been a proud Slytherin and her sister had been a clever Ravenclaw. If she was anything else, she wouldn't even feel like a Steele. Her father's family had been in Slytherin for centuries, and her mother's family had been in Ravenclaw for the past six generations.

"I couldn't even imagine," Madeleine said, earning a scoff from Sirius. "They would disown me, I am fairly positive."

"Well I want to be a Gryffindor." Rory said, flexing her nonexistent arm muscles. "Red looks brilliant on me."

"Me too." James said leaning back into his seat. "It goes so well with my complexion." He adding, shooting Rory a playful smirk.

Madeleine stayed silent through the remainder of the discussion about house placement. She had felt an undeniable nervousness creep up into her gut at the line of conversation. She had always pictured herself wearing the brilliant blue of Ravenclaw, but now that she was sitting on the train with Rory and the two boys, she found she wasn't so sure if that would happen. She wasn't as cunning as the rest of her family. She wasn't particularly brave, as evidenced by the fact that she couldn't even mange to tell Rory to stop sharing so much uncomfortable information. She wasn't above average in intelligence, she imagined. And she certainly wasn't good at making and keeping friends.

Rory was a Gryffindor. Madeleine had known it from the moment she met her. She was and she would be sorted into that house almost as soon as the hat touched her tangled blonde hair.

The problem was, Madeleine was discovering in the long train ride, was that she didn't see herself as any of the houses.

She didn't see herself as anything, and that made her so nervous she felt like she was going to puke.


	3. Chapter 3

_The trouble with our times is that the future is not what it used to be._

_-Paul Valery_

* * *

_October, 1975 6 a.m._

Rory always and perpetually woke up early. It was a rather unfortunate trait, if she was being honest, that had plagued her despite all her best efforts to stay asleep. It had begun when she was five years old and had maintained itself ever since. Her mother, Stella, had insisted rather vehemently that it was only possible to see the Wambles, which Rory still wasn't sure exactly what they were, at precisely 5 o'clock in the morning. No earlier, no later. For an entire year of her young life her mother had dragged her out of bed, ignoring her desperate, exhausted cries of protest, before sitting her on the roof with nothing but a mug of muddy coco to keep her company. She had sat on the roof of their moss covered house, starring at the night sky, looking around blearily for the supposed worm-like creatures.

The pattern had repeated itself until her mother had given up and moved on to something else that didn't involve being awake at such an ungodly hour.

However, that didn't change the fact that it was practically impossible for Rory to sleep in as a result. It had always bothered her, grated on her at the best of times, when she was younger that she couldn't sleep in like all of the other lazy kids around her. As she got older, however, she found that not being able to sleep past six had its certain perks.

Exciting stuff always seemed to happen in the wee hours of the morning.

For instance, Rory was the first one to delightfully discover that Mr. Poultier, the heralded town family man, was having a sordid affair with his cleaning lady. She had been sitting on top of her ratty roof, mulling over the undeniable insanity that plagued her mother, when she saw Mia, the cleaning lady, sneaking out of the house at an hour she shouldn't have been sneaking out during. She had still been wearing her clothes from the night before, albeit more wrinkled and disheveled. Her black hair had been a horrendous mess and tangled over her tan, exotic looking face. Her makeup, which was always so beautifully done and styled, was smudged and dirty. Rory had, being only nine at the time, been more than slightly confused. She had sat on her roof for a moment longer, watching as Mia snuck down the quiet street before she slipped back into her dark room. She had made the mistake of telling her other about it at breakfast the next morning, resulting in it being spread about to the entire town by supper. Mia had left town the next day, never to be seen or heard from by any of them again.

She had also, three very long years later and much to her dismay, seen the old baker woman, Mrs. Higgenbothem, throwing away her husbands most prized possessions. Archibald Higgenbothem had been impossibly proud of his rather extensive collection of dragon scales, as most of Magical Salem knew, and as Mrs. Higgenbothem knew. Rory had seen her throwing said scales away just hours before the news broke that Archibald, or Archie as he liked the children to call him, had died in his sleep. Rory had gone over that specific incident for months before she finally arrived at the chilling conclusion that still gave her pause well into her late teens. It was simple fact, really, that Mrs. Higgenbothem, as sweet as she was, had wanted her horribly abusive sixth husband dead for years.

The most interesting, and most alarming thing that Rory had witnessed in her time sitting alone up on her dingy roof was something that most people, wizards or not, would find to be altogether unassuming. About a month before Rory and Maddie were set to start their second year of school, Rory had seen Abigail Steele sneaking out of her house in the middle of the night. To most it would seem like a very typical sight. A teenager stealing away in the middle of the night, unbeknownst to anyone, was hardly something to place much emphasis on. However, in Magical Salem the teenagers did not sneak out. Especially those who were a part of the most prominent family in town.

The Steele's kept their home so locked down it was like an impregnable fortress in the middle of town.

Rory had thought, for the briefest of moments that she had been hallucinating at first. Abigail's brilliant brown hair was hard to see in the meager, dull light from the moon, making Rory think it wasn't actually Abigail at all. Rory couldn't really distinguish her face but for some reason, she was positive it was the middle Steele child. Maddie was too small, and altogether not brave enough to break the rules that were set out for her, and William wouldn't really need to sneak out. He was allowed to do whatever he damn well pleased enough as it was.

Rory had watched, with squinted eyes and pursed lips, Abigail scaling down from her second story window for what felt like an eternity before she had realized what she was looking at.

The Steele's, as one would expect, lived in the largest house in Magical Salem. It was rather intimidating, to be perfectly frank, and ancient looking in every sense of the word. It held a certain air about it that left nothing up to the imagination as to who ruled, outwardly and inwardly, the entirety of Magical Salem. Rory had always thought it looked like a missed place medieval castle, with its stone façade and tower at the center of its courtyard, but she was quite sure she was the only one in town who felt that way. Its face was covered in in neatly kept vines that gave it an earthy and homey look that everybody knew was not present, in the slightest, inside of the massive estate.

Behind the Steele family estate rested the community quidditch pitch and behind that was the small lake that nobody but the Steeles and their associates used. The pitch, while still considered community property wasn't really open for anybody to use. Only the pureblood boys and their friends were taught to play quidditch. Not the girls. Not the lower class children. All of the rest of them simply had to be happy with sitting, watching, and cheering.

The Knight home, in stark contrast, sat at the very bottom of the hill, tucked away amongst the massive trees that surrounded the village. It was smaller, obviously, by comparison, and was altogether not nearly as well kept and clean. The Knights did not employ servants, which almost every other pureblood family did, and for that their house fell into ran ever present and prevailing state of disrepair and disarray.

Rory had grown up with a clear view of the massive Steele home. It had always bothered her, being forced to stare and look at a home that was so much nicer than her own, but as she got older she could see its undeniable merits.

For instance, she was able to watch as Abigail slipped and shimmied her way out of her home before running down the large, slippery hill, stumbling every once and a while. She had passed by the bookstore, bakery, and butcher, all of which were closed, before sprinting her way towards the far side of the small town.

At that point, Rory had had to stand up on the roof, using one of the many overhanging tree branches to support herself to see where exactly Abigail was going. She leaned out over the edge, keeping her tiny, slipper clad feet firmly planted on the dirty roof and watched as the middle Steele had raced her way through town.

She had watched, utterly confused, as Abigail paused for a moment, fixing her overly nice dress, before continuing on.

Rory had watched as she made her way over to the only gap in the wall that kept Magical Salem from Muggle Salem.

And she had watched as Abigial slipped through, with a grace that Rory herself would kill for, without so much as a glance over her shoulder.

It was odd for the simple reason that nobody ever crossed over to Muggle Salem without a reason, and Rory was at a loss, at the time, for what exactly that reason could be.

For an entire month before she had left for school Rory saw Abigail leave her house at the same time very single night and come racing back a few short hours later. She came racing back as if nothing had happened which Rory knew wasn't true.

Just like with Mrs. Higgenbothem, Rory had decided to keep Abigail Steele's sneaky behavior a secret. She didn't tell her horrible gossip of a mother, as much as she wanted to, she didn't tell her timid father, and she certainly didn't tell her best friend.

At Hogwarts, the story was much the same. Exciting stuff always seemed to happen early in the morning. Even when she stayed up until the wee hours of the morning, she found that she was wide awake before any of the other girls in the sixth year Gryffindor dorm room. Every morning when she woke up before everyone else she was greeted with the sound of snoring, coming from Alice, and loud breathing, coming from both Lily and Mary. The only person who was a silent sleeper was Maddie.

In the six years that the two of them had shared a room, Rory had never heard Maddie make a single sound in her sleep. Rory had been baffled at first, seeing as how she herself moved and groaned like a dying horse when she slept, but she had quickly learned to ignore it.

In the six years that they had been friends, Rory had learned to ignore a lot of things about Maddie.

Maddie, while much better than she used to be, was still impossibly pureblood in practice. Rory knew she tried her best to fit in with the rest of them, but she could still see her upbringing as clear as day. She ate with the best manners and always finished her homework before everyone else, including Lily, who always seemed to finish it mere moments after it was assigned. Maddie never stayed out past curfew, unless it was involving some clever scheme with the Marauders, and she wrote a letter to her parents every single week like clockwork, even if she hated herself for it.

She had very few friends, outside her house that is, and maintained even fewer close ones.

Rory had often been asked by some of their more vocal classmates why she was still friends with Maddie, as on the surface they were entirely different, and she always came up with the same answer. Despite all of her pureblood neuroses, Madeleine Steele was about as far from pureblood in her thoughts and feelings.

She hated her family. She had let it slip about halfway through their third year that she thought her family was made up of the worst kind of people and Rory hadn't been able to forget it.

They had always functioned under the awkward guise of never discussing their views about muggles and those of non-pureblood status. That is, until Maddie blurted it out on a very late night down in the common room. Rory, up until that point had assumed, just like everybody else, that Maddie disliked those who were not considered pure. She had nearly choked on the Pumpkin Pastie that she was scarfing down at her friends revelation. It had seemed rather sudden and frank for the way Maddie normally went about dolling out her information, which caused Rory to question the motivation behind her words. She had the distinct feeling that something had happened over the Christmas break that year to warrant her sudden change of heart. Something that she wouldn't share with even Rory.

After that point Rory didn't really need an excuse to tell people as to why she was friends with the strawberry blonde. She knew why and that was all that mattered.

Rory shook her head, clearing the sleep out of her eyes. She gave the dorm room one more look over, before forcing herself out of the warmth and comfort of her bed. She knew she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep so it seemed entirely pointless to stay in bed waiting for the day to progress. Besides, she had promised, rather reluctantly, to meet James and Sirius in their room at exactly 6 o' clock the previous morning at breakfast.

She had been surprised by the early time, considering the two of them were known for their marathon sleeping abilities, but she had agreed all the same.

Rory slipped on a cardigan, Maddie's cardigan, over her midnight blue nightie before slipping on her favorite pair of boots. She glanced around the room once more, smiling to herself when she saw the ever present drool sliding down Alice's chin, before hurrying out of the room.

Despite the fact that no one would be awake, Rory still lumbered around the common room and up the stairs to the sixth year boy's dorm like she always did. It was almost impossible for her to take quiet steps, as she had discovered when she was quite young, so she had given up altogether a long time ago. She made her way up to the stairs to the boy's dormitory, noting with a slight smirk all of the articles of girls' clothing that led to the rooms of the older boys. It was always like this on the mornings after the weekends and major parties. She had long ago leaned to identify the age of the people involved by the raciness of the undergarments. As a general rule of thumb, the younger girls didn't typically wear thongs and lacy bras on a regular basis.

Just like Rory expected Sirius, James, and the rest of the room was still fast asleep.

The entire room was filled with a madrigal symphony of snores from all sides. She had visited them enough to recognize the different snores and who they belonged to. Sirius' was the deepest and most alarming. It cut across the room like a muggle chainsaw, vibrating Rory to her core. The next deepest was James'. It was not nearly as alarming as Sirius' or as frequent. The next in the line belonged to Remus Lupin. His was the most normal and soothing. Rory had found, after years of hearing the boys snores, that she actually likes Remus' snoring. The last and most sputtering belonged the little lump Peter Pettigrew. Rory had often thought he was choking on his own saliva and air, judging by the coughing and spitting that was involved.

She made her way around the piles of dirty clothes, and who knows what else, and over to James bed.

He was sleeping on his back with his mouth handing firmly open. He was drooling and shirtless, but other than that, he looked about the same as he always did. His glasses had gone askew at some point during the night, making him look much more innocent than he actually was.

Rory leaned over him for a moment before reached out her hand, holding her wand, and aimed it at his face.

"Aguamenti." She said quietly, watching as the water shot out of her wand towards his face in a solid, smooth stream. She had to fight the laugh in anticipation of what was coming.

He immediately sat up, spluttering and cursing, pushing his now sopping hair out of his face. He looked around the room, looking very similar to a drowned rat, before his gaze finally landed on Rory. She was holding her hand over her mouth, trying to fight back the giggles that were dying to get out. He immediately flopped back into his bed, muttering something very foul under his breath in the process. The others in the room sat up, cursing as well, looking for the source of the noise that disturbed their sleep. Remus upon seeing that it was Rory, immediately sunk back into his bed, pulling his red covers up over his face. Peter, trying his best at being charming, sent her a small smile and a wave, both of which earned a bark like laugh from Sirius before he too went back to sleep.

"Blood hell Rorster, what was that for?" Rory couldn't help but smile at James' clever use of words.

"You said to be here at six." Rory said simply, pushing him over so that she could sit with him. He rolled over, forcing himself to sit up and make a space for her at the top of his bed. He flung a lazy arm over her shoulder, pulling her in closer to him. Sirius glanced around the room for a moment before he too begrudgingly moved over to sit with them. He placed himself on the end of the bed, yawning widely, before leaning back against one of the posts on his bed. "And its six fifteen."

"As beautiful as you look in the morning Rory," Sirius paused, shooting her small smirk. "Why the hell are you here so early?" Sirius asked, running his hand through his hair and over his face in an attempt to wake himself up. "I mean I was up pretty late if you catch my drift."

He shot her a wolfish smile, wagging his dark eyebrows at her. "I always catch your drift Sirius." Rory said rolling her eyes over at him. "Me and everybody else in this school, Maddie included."

"Now there's that American sense of humor." Sirius said pulling Rory over to him in a tight hug. "I had forgotten how much I missed in the six hours I've been without it."

"Shove off." Rory said, disentangling herself from him. "Now tell me why I am here so bleeding early."

"Americans can't use the word 'bleeding' properly can they James?" Sirius asked his now bespectacled friend.

"Not very well I would say." James responded earning a glare from Rory.

"I'm not here to discuss linguistics." Rory said in harsh whisper. "I am here to discuss what you asked me here to discuss."

James seemed to sober up the tone of her voice. He looked over at Sirius for a moment before reaching down beside his bed. He fumbled around for a moment, throwing various items into the floor or over his head before he paused. His hand returned holding his favorite shirt tightly, along with a crumpled up newspaper. He slipped the shirt on over his perpetually messy hair, shoving the newspaper over at her in a simple position, keeping his gaze trained onto her face.

Rory was confused for a moment, before she looked down at the wrinkled paper. The article was only a few days old and obviously muggle in nature, judging by the lack of movement in the black and white photograph. Despite the fact that it wasn't moving Rory could get the message of the picture perfectly.

It was a family of four, tied to stakes, set on fire.

Rory had to fight back the vomit from rising up from her mouth. Her mouth feel open in an involuntary 'o' shape, a sound of disgust fall from her lips.

"My dad sent it to me yesterday at breakfast. The article says it happened about a hundred miles away from Salem." James said slowly, reaching forward to pull the paper away from Rory. He could see the tears beginning to from in her eyes at the sight of the now dead muggle family.

"We figured you would want to know." Sirius said slowly, showing his rare moments of compassion. "We were going to tell Maddie when she finally manages to drag herself out of bed."

"That was in Salem?" Rory mulled the whole thing over in her mind. "Wizards did that?"

"There has been talk," James trailed off, trying to find the right words. "There has been talk that they were killed by the followers of…"

"It is just talk though." Sirius interrupted, seeing the alarmed look on Rory's face.

"Do you think Dumbledore knows?" Rory asked, picturing the old wizards face if he was to hear about the poor muggle family. "I mean he has to right? He's one of the main opponents of…" She paused, not entirely willing to say the name of the wizard that was vamping up his terror on the once peaceful global wizarding community.

"It's Dumbledore. Of course he knows. He knows everything doesn't he?"

"This is just…" Rory trailed off, shaking head blearily. "What a thing to wake up to."

Rory shook her head blankly, still thinking about the muggle family. She supposed she shouldn't have been too terribly surprised to see this type of story coming from so near to her hometown. The anti muggle sentiment in the United States was only getting stronger as the times progressed. The pureblood maniacs had latched onto the notions and anti muggle and muggle born sentiment coming from Great Britain and had run with it. The country was now entirely divided internally between those who valued blood status above all else. To them, if you weren't pure, you weren't anything.

It was common place to hear of people going missing in the middle of the night, only to turn up in a field, tortured and bleeding.

It was common place for entire families to disappear and never be heard from again.

And it was common place for muggle children to turn up, after being missing for weeks, stripped down to nothing, covered in burn marks from wands.

It made Rory sick to think that her town was the epicenter for all the hell that was happening. It was for those reasons that her family had chosen to take vacations for the majority of the year. As crazy as her mother was, she knew when it was time to get out, and if there was ever a time, it was now. She had only been back to Salem, Magical or Muggle, twice in the past four years. She had spent the rest of her time, rather reluctantly, searching the world for magical creatures with her mother and tagalong father. Her family had been fortunate enough to find an excuse not to be there in the worst of times, but not everybody who hailed from Salem was as lucky.

Maddie was still forced to go home every single holiday and break. She would often come back, quieter and more somber, relenting all of the horrible things her parents and brother had done over to entirely too long break. She would cry for hours about all of the awful things she was forced to listen to. She wouldn't talk to anybody for days, with the exception of her close friends; for fear that her complaining would somehow make it back to her parents or their higher ups.

Maddie was terrified of Salem and there was nothing anybody could do to get her out.

"Are you going back?" James asked quietly, releasing his hold around her for a moment.

"I'm not planning on going back unless it is vitally necessary." Rory said quietly, holding the excess fabric of her cardigan tightly in her hands. "My family is going to the Congo to hunt for Humbleforns."

"I'm sorry, for what exactly?" Sirius asked, not fully believing the word that had come out of her mouth.

"Humbleforns." Rory said, not really believing the word either. "I have no idea what they are, but it keeps me out of Salem so I'll hunt them for dear life."

"What about Maddie?" Sirius asked, looking at Rory directly in the eye for the first time in their conversation. "Is she going home?"

Rory took in Sirius' handsome face, taking note of the rare look of concern that it was sporting. He was playing with a small string that had come off of James blanket idly with his fingers, rolling it around carefully. Rory knew that Sirius knew that Maddie had to go home. He had to go home. They were both in the same situation, what with their families and what not.

"She has to." Rory said sadly. "She always has to. You know that Sirius."

"Well maybe she can find out something useful while she's there." James said letting out a low breath. "I mean it's not getting any better anywhere is it? People are starting to turn up missing all over the world. Maybe she can get us something that will help. We need to get all we can before it's too late. Maybe she can see if…"

"By all means," Rory snapped, causing both Remus and Peter to look up suddenly in alarm from their spots in bed. "Use your best friend to get information."

"Oh come off it." James said, indicating to the other two to go back to sleep, before turning his annoyed gaze on Rory. "You know I would much rather have Maddie safe in the UK than at home with her nutter parents. We all know it's them who are responsible. We all know it was them who killed those three little boys six years ago. She isn't a child, Rory."

"I am sure I could convince my mum to let Maddie come over for some of the holiday." Sirius said shrugging his shoulders, attempting to get the two of them to stop snapping. "As shitty as my home is, it's bound to be better than that hellhole she lives in now. I mean, Salem might as well be a bloody war zone, what with all the dark wizards vacationing there now a days."

"She's not going to spy for us." Rory said simply, sitting back against James completely. "She's too scared. She's not going to do anything against them. And we can't ask her to do that."

"What are we supposed to do Rory? Let more muggles be killed?" James snapped, standing up from the bed completely. "It's everywhere Rory. You can't just ignore that. This is just the beginning. You know that and I know that."

"I can ignore it James. We're bloody sixteen years old. This isn't our damn job and you know it. We aren't going to use our friend, your best friend, as some information gofer. It's just not going to happen."

"You can't make that decision for her, Aurora."

"Both of you just need to calm down." Sirius hissed, stepping in between them. "It is too bloody early to be dealing with this. We'll talk to Maddie later when we practice and then we'll go talk to Dumbledore. Problem solved."

They all looked back and forth between each other, Rory glaring at James heatedly. Sirius could feel the tension flowing off between the two of them. They are silent for what felt like an eternity before Rory finally spoke up, her voice shaking slightly. "I suggest you start thinking logically, James Potter, before you ruin even more people's mornings."

They both watched her leave, eyes wide. Rory was not the type to raise her voice. It didn't suit her in the slightest. Sirius let out a low whistle, glancing around the room for a moment before turning to face James with a slight smirk on his face.

"Well that's one way to wake up."

"Shut up, Padfoot."


	4. Chapter 4

_Time is the wisest counselor of all. _

_-Pericles_

* * *

_October 17, 1975_

Madeleine, unlike Aurora, was not an early riser in the slightest. It had started out simply enough. She had decided, during one of her more quietly rebellious phases, that it would be the perfect form of silent protest to stay in bed as late as humanly possible. She had reveled in the fact, more than reveled actually, that it drove her uptight and early rising mother insane. The habit, as much as it bothered everyone else around her, had stuck.

She had long ago given up on pretending that she was still on comfortable terms with her miserable family. She had tried, for several depressing years in fact, to pretend like she was still part of the family. She had tried until it had become impossible. She had given up on the notion that she wasn't an outsider, resulting in a need to constantly, and secretly, give them as much shit as she possibly could. She played quidditch to make her sexist father angry. She dyed the tips of her hair, with the assistance of Rory, without her mother's permission to see how dark a shade of red she could get. She blew up her brother's favorite dark arts books, just to watch him squirm and twitch with anger.

The only person Maddie ever left alone was Abigail. She was the only member of her family who never even attempted to harm or bother Maddie and in turn she never bothered her back. Abigail was secretly, and not so secretly when they were alone, proud of her for making it into Gryffindor, unlike the rest of her family. She was the only one that made her miserable life at home even remotely bearable. She was the only one, with the exception of Rory, that made Maddie happy during the seemingly endless months of summer vacation.

It was because of her constant need to give her mother fits, one of the few things that kept her sane, that Maddie found she couldn't seem to wake herself up early, no matter how hard she tried. She slept through anything. It could be raining fire outside of her dorm and she wouldn't even notice. She rather enjoyed it, much to those around her chagrin, so she never really bothered to change it.

"Maddie, get up now."

Maddie stirred slightly, pulling her legs up into her chest. She squeezed her eyes shut tighter, making stars and colors shoot across her groggy, hazy vision. She cracked open one eye, albeit hesitantly, fully expecting to see Rory standing over her. She peered down at her through her now green, nonprescription glasses. She had long ago ditched the red ones, claiming, in her a rather hoity-toity voice, that they were far too stereotypical for a Gryffindor to be wearing.

Maddie eyed her for a moment before she rolled over, pulling her covers over her head roughly.

"It is time to meet the day, Miss Maddie." Rory said in a very high pitched, very annoying voice. Maddie felt her bed groan slightly as a new found weight was added to it. She pressed the covers tighter into her face, forcing the musty smell into her nose, before she felt a small pair of hands pulling roughly on them, forcing them back from her face.

"The day doesn't want to meet me." Maddie said sourly, forcing herself to sit up next to her friend.

"Sirius and James are looking for you." Rory said, playing the blanket that Maddie kept slung over the end of her bed. "Sirius specifically."

Maddie eyed her for a moment, taking in her perky demeanor and wide eyes. All of the rest of her roommates were still sleeping, causing a symphony of soft breathing and slight snores to fill up the room.

"How long have you been up today?" Maddie asked, stretching her arms up above her head, causing both of her shoulders and back to pop unevenly. "You seem oddly perky, despite the fact that it is so damn early."

Rory looked around, squinting her eyes for a moment before she answered with a smile. "About four hours."

"I don't know how you do it."

"It's simple. Nutter Stella took care of it for me." Rory said getting up and going over to Maddie's trunk to grab her training clothes. "I can loan her out to you if you want. I think she'll do wonders for your sleeping schedule."

"No thanks." Maddie said smiling over cheekily at her friend, throwing her covers back, sending shivers down her unclad legs at the chilliness of the October air. "I would rather live with Old Higgie than your mother." She paused, shooting her a sly smirk. "No offense."

If they were both being honest, no one actually wanted to live with or anywhere near Stella Knight. She was, as everybody postulated and said, utterly and completely insane. Even Mrs. Higgenbothem, or Old Higgie was the two of them so lovingly referred to her as, was more sane than Stella. Old Higgie had been accused of fifteen murders, a rather modest estimate, over the past ten years. Choosing her over Stella Knight was truly a commentary on Stella's mental status.

"It's alright, I would too." Rory said, closing the heavy lid of Maddie's trunk with a loud snap, before sitting herself on top of it and crossing her legs underneath her. "I find Old Higgie to be absolutely charming. All that crazy, you can just smell it on her, don't you think?"

"Underneath all the cat smell you mean?" Maddie said, stripping down from her nightclothes before quickly replacing them with her athletic clothes. She pulled her long hair up into a rather ungraceful ponytail, ignoring the fact that it was almost impossible to get all of the stray strands out of her face. "Am I still helping you with runes tonight?"

"Like always." Rory said, throwing one of Maddie's favorite baubles up and down in the air above her head, catching it just before it smashed into the ground. "You better go; you don't want to keep them waiting. James is in one of his moods today, I imagine."

"Helped along by you, I'm sure."

"As always." Rory said, allowing the ever present smile on her face faltering ever so slightly. She scrunched up her lips, letting out a low whistle of annoyance. Maddie eyed her for a moment, taking in the way her pale face contorted slightly when she thought Maddie wasn't looking, the way she clenched her fists open and closed, the way she pursed her lips slightly. Her hair fell in her face as she looked down at the ground, rubbing her hands together in an odd fashion.

"What?" Maddie asked, pausing as she attempted to find a matching pair of socks in the piles and piles of clothes that lined the room.

"What do you mean 'what'?"

"You have an odd look on your face." Maddie said, straightening up to look at Rory more fully and completely. "Odder than normal, I mean."

"It's just something James said." Rory shook her head, picking herself up off of the trunk with all the grace of an eight-five year old man. "Don't worry about it too much, Maddie. You'll get wrinkles."

"What's bothering you Aurora?"

Rory immediately looked up at the use of her full name. She shot Maddie a very sour look, one that she found she was using more often with her friends, before she turned around to face her bed, turning her back to Maddie. Maddie watched her for a moment, feeling her eyes narrow in confusion, as Rory began to mumble to herself.

"Honestly, Madpad, it's nothing. I am sure James," She paused, her voice dripping with undeniable anger for a moment, before she continued. "and Sirius will fill you in on everything."

Maddie had known Rory long enough to know when she was lying and when she wasn't. She got twitchy when she was lying. She never spoke with as much conviction when she was lying, always dancing around the subject at hand with a finesse that she no doubt picked up from the Marauders. Rory, when caught in a lie, which was altogether rare, always blushed like a tomato, sputtering for a moment, before changing the subject entirely.

"You are a terrible liar." Maddie said simply, pulling on her worn out running shoes. She felt her toes hitting the edge, making her purple socked toes stick out slightly.

"I suppose so." Rory ran her fingers through her messy hair, fixing Maddie with an odd look. "But that's what I have you for isn't it?"

"If you want to look at it that way."

* * *

When Maddie and Rory were exactly twelve years old, they had both come to the sad realization that Maddie wasn't a very fun or good person to be around. They had realized it after a rather awkward year of friendship that they forced themselves through. In Maddie's very sheltered life she hadn't really put in much effort to making meaningful relationships. Her brother would always dislike her, for some unfathomable reason, so she never found it prudent to try and win his affections. Her mother would always and forever be cold and distant. Her father would always be impossibly mean and sadistic. She had tried when she was younger to reach out to them, to relate to them, but she had quickly learned that it truly wasn't worth her time and effort.

She blamed her family for making her a little lacking in the friends department. When Rory had practically forced her friendship upon Maddie, she didn't know how to function properly. She had spent her entire recent memory learning how to be just herself, alone and individual. Being forced to interact with someone that was so different, and unrelated, had been rather hard for her to handle with any sort of grace and tact.

For the first two years of her schooling she was just, regrettably, like she was with her family. She was quiet, reserved, and above all else, guarded. She had been raised to never ask questions and to stick to what she was told to do. As a first year, a gawky awkward mess, she didn't talk to anybody but Rory and, on the rare occasion, James. She had usually sat in the corner of the classroom, speaking only when spoken to, offering up very little to any sort of conversation. It was embarrassing to think about, mortifying actually. She had been so desperate to find something to occupy her time when she wasn't being horribly awkward she had taken up knitting. Knitting. It was so sad, it still made her cringe to think about. A plethora of scarves was all she had to show from her time as an eleven year old.

When she was a second year she hadn't really done much better in the friend department from the year previous. In fact, more often than not, she found herself going in the opposite direction. Instead of making more friends, she alienated the ones she had, despite her best efforts. Rory, who by all accounts was never going to stop being her friend, started to drift away from her. Apparently being standoffish and cold wasn't exactly the best and most solid way to make friends at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

It wasn't until the second semester in her third year of schooling that Maddie realized she wasn't exactly going about things the right and proper way.

She realized that Lily, despite her almost constant need to impress teachers, wasn't nearly as annoying as she had first thought. Besides, in reality, Lily's annoying features were nothing when compared to William's.

James and Sirius were downright good and upstanding people when compared to her mother and father.

Rory was wonderfully refreshing and invigorating when put in comparison to her horribly uptight and rigid society.

She came to the realization, the rather empowering and fulfilling realization, that she wasn't doing herself any favors acting and carrying on the way she had been. It did her no good to align herself with such wicked and sick people. It did her no good to ignore the fact that she hated them.

After her third year she did everything in her power to be the exact opposite of how she was raised to be.

Maddie did her best to make more friends in her house. She had had to hide her upbringing, at first, burying it deep, making sure that none of her family's sick ideas popped their way through. She listened to the vapid stories the girls told, ignoring the fact that they were startlingly similar to the ones told by the pureblood girls at her mother's society events. When a boy was brave, or in most cases desperate, enough to venture a conversation with her, she pushed the fact that they bragged as much as the boys in her home town to the back of her mind. She reveled in everything Gryffindor, half to fit in her with her new tentative friendships, half to please herself, more so than she had earlier on in her schooling. She delighted in how furious it made her parents. Maddie purchased everything gold and red, with the enthusiastic help of Rory and James. She had to stash it at Rory's house, but that didn't stop her from wearing it every chance she got. She had worn it at home for a time before her father threatened to pull her out of school completely.

Her favorite thing she had discovered to make her parents utterly irate was to take up quidditch. It was considered to be a boys sport in Magical Salem, making it the perfect way to make them want to lock her away for the foreseeable future. Her father had made it abundantly clear that it was for men and men only. Her brother had proudly played for the Slytherin house team, bringing home the quidditch cup home to brag to anyone who made the mistake of asking. Her mother had nearly burst into angry tears when she had learned that Maddie had made the house team, shouting at her for what felt like days before finally stalking away in a brooding fashion that only Persephone Steele could manage.

She had spent her entire time after coming back from Christmas break in her third year working on to fly and play seeker.

If she was going to defy her parents, she had figured she was going to do it good and proper.

It had taken a rather long list of promises and no small amount of charm to convince James and Sirius to practice with her as much as possible. They had been rather reluctant to help her at first, considering she wasn't exactly the poster child for being a good friend. After many long weeks of begging and Rory stepping in to urge on her behalf, they finally agreed. It had been awkward at first, making them all almost immediately regret the arrangement. That is, until Maddie decided to take it upon herself to hex the pants of the passing by group of Slytherins to slowly, and rather painfully, creep up their backsides.

For some reason they had warmed up to her after that.

It had been their arrangement, at the time, to meet every third Sunday of the month, no matter what they were doing, to practice on their brooms.

It hadn't taken long, much to Maddie's delight, for the whole arrangement to become less of an arrangement and more of a social meeting.

Maddie wormed and weaved her way through the surprisingly crowded hallway, keeping her old racing broom close to her body. Despite the fact that it was s Sunday, the school was teeming with student activity. The nerdier clubs came out in full force, playing heated matches of Gobbstones and Wizard's Chess in droves in the less occupied alcoves. None of them looked up from their games and conversations as Maddie whizzed past them, holding her broom above her head so that it wouldn't accidently hit the people she passed by.

The sound of her athletic shoes slapping against the cold stone floor of the castle hallways was lost in all of the noise around her until she finally made it outside of the castle.

The wind made quick work of destroying her already impossibly messy hair. It whipped around her face, getting stuck in her mouth and disrupting her vision. She pushed her curly pony tail behind her shoulders while still hurrying down the dewy hill towards the quidditch pitch that sat on the far side of the grounds. She could see the two familiar shapes of James and Sirius zooming back and forth over the pitch in the distance, loud laughs carrying over the wind despite the large distance. She felt her mouth quirk into a small smile at the sight of them. They always seemed to find a way to make it to the pitch before her, despite their less than spectacular record for showing up on time to things.

When she finally made it down to them she skidded to a halt, sliding slightly in the muddy earth on the pitch. They were throwing the muddy quaffle back and forth, cracking loud jokes with every new throw. She couldn't help but wince as mud slapped across their face from the quaffle, making their already dirty faces even dirtier.

She stood on the ground, leaning heavily on her broom as she looked up at them. Neither of them had seemed to notice her watching them, as evidenced by their complete and utter obliviousness. She had seen them doing this what felt like a hundred times, and yet every time she could never figure out what exactly was so funny to them that they didn't really notice what was going around them. When they finally paused in their making fun of something or another, Maddie took that as her cue to call their attention down to her.

"Morning." She couldn't help but smile even wider as they both turned to look at her, identical smiles on their muddy faces. They both immediately turned their brooms towards her and sped down next to her, throwing their feet onto the ground with a mushy thud.

"Hey, nice of you to join us princess." James said loudly, pulling her into a very tight, very messy hug. "I could have sworn you needed at least another eight hours to be functional amongst normal people."

"It's a good thing you two mouth-breathers aren't normal than isn't it?" Maddie said, smirking wildly at them.

"You better stop with all the funny that is spewing out of you , Maddie, or else we won't be able to stop our insides from exploding with laughter." Sirius said, earning a loud laugh from James as he held Maddie to his side.

"I'll try to contain myself." Maddie said, untangling herself from James' arms.

Sirius let out a bark like laugh, reaching over a long arm to wrap around her shoulders. He pulled her into his chest, smashing her face into the muddy material of his thin t-shirt. She leaned back slightly to look up at him, not entirely happy with the fact that her face was now smeared with goo. His long, jet black hair had fallen into his eyes. It always seemed to be falling into his eyes. He had learned it made the silly, chatty girls swoon when he brushed it out of his eyes so he never bothered to move it. Maddie, against all female stereotypes, hated it. It hid his face too much. He was smirking at her, thoroughly proud of the jibe he had just thrown her way. She could see the mirth behind his grey eyes as he looked down at her, pulling her closer to him with his long arms.

"You can't deny that was a good one." He said, picking her up slightly before setting her down and stepping back from her.

"It was," She paused, smirking at the pleased look on his face. "For a four year old."

His face immediately fell slightly, a playful pout lining his face as he stepped back further towards his broom. He swung an impossibly long leg over the side, sitting himself down comfortably on it. He allowed it to hover back and forth, fixing her with a very Sirius-esque look. "You break my heart, Maddie. You really do."

"As always."

"If you two would stop gawking at each other, we could move on to the reason we're here." James said, sitting himself down on his own broom. He lifted himself up into the air, moving towards the center of the pitch with a withering look at the both of them over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry mate." Sirius said, moving to follow James. "She's just so beautiful. It's distracting."

Maddie rolled her eyes, throwing her leg over her own broom stick. She settled down onto the familiar feeling, adjusting herself for a moment, before kicking her legs off to follow after them. The mud that had appeared on her face, thanks to Sirius and James, was cold and biting as the wind flew across it, making her skin fell almost immediately chapped. Her hair whipped around her even more the higher up she got, making her involuntarily smile.

She supposed if she was going to piss off her parents, she couldn't have picked a more rewarding and delightful way to do it.

The farther up into the air, the more she felt the wind whipping against her body. It bit through her thin athletic clothes, chilling her to the bone. She should have had the foresight to wear a jacket in the middle of October. She felt another shiver run down her spine as the wind flared up again. They were both waiting for her, identical smirks on their faces. They waited patiently until she was in front of them, tossing the quaffle back and forth casually.

Maddie could see that they did this purely because she, and in some cases, Rory, asked them to. Neither of them needed to extra practice to be good. They were the best in the school and they knew it. They both talked about going professional, if given the opportunity, and Maddie had no doubt that they would be able to.

"What did you want to work on today?" Maddie asked, bouncing up and down in the wind slightly.

James glanced over at Sirius for a moment before looking back over at Maddie. "Well, we kind of figured…"

"We figured we'd just talk today." Sirius said, cutting across James. Maddie eyed them both with her mouth wide open. Never in her life, unless they were drunk, had they just wanted to talk with her. She always had to push them to get them to talk about anything but what Kitty Kakowski wore under her uniform, or what prank they were going to pull on some unsuspecting Slytherin. They were surface level for the good majority of their lives, and it was more than alarming for Maddie to hear them asking her for more. "It won't take long."

"What's wrong?" Maddie asked slowly. "What do you want?"

James rolled his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh. "Look Madpad, we just really need to talk to you." Maddie knew they were being serious when they used the silly nickname that Rory had given her when she was younger.

"What did you two do?" Maddie asked, feeling the panic rising up in her chest. The last time they had done this they were informing her that they had accidentally told Sirius parents about her pension for hating everything Slytherin. Naturally it had made its way to her father. She had been grounded for a month because of that, and she hadn't talked to them for even longer. She couldn't even count all the times she had had to cover for the two of them, ultimately getting herself into trouble. Her hands started to shake at the thought of what they were going to ask her to cover up or vouch for.

"Why do you always assume that we did something?" Sirius asked, feigning hurt with his hand over his heart.

"Well to name a few…"

"Alright, alright," James said, moving his broom towards them before settling into a more relaxed seated position. "We just have to tell you this and then we can go back to our normal, pranking, dashing selves."

"You two are scaring me." Maddie said simply, following the two of them to the soft grass on the bottom of the pitch. "You never act like this. Serious and what not."

"I'm always Sirius." Sirius said, ignoring the dark look he got from James.

"Not funny." Maddie said, attaining balance on her broom before folding her arms across her chest.

"Have you read the papers lately?" James asked, scooting even closer to the two of them so that he would be heard over the howling wind. "Like yesterday, recent?"

"No. I was too busy helping Peter finish his homework in time for the first lesson." Maddie said, shooting them dirty looks for pushing that job off on her. "Why? What is going on?"

Sirius glanced at James for a moment before he opened his mouth with a hesitant expression on his face. "Maddie, there was an incident near Salem."

He knew she was used to hearing about bad things happening in her home town. Bad things always happened in Salem. It wasn't really a surprise for the citizens to hear about suspicious deaths and disappearances all the time. Maddie's own cousin disappeared ten years ago, only to turn up dead six months later covered in dirt and leaves. That wasn't even the worst one to come out of that town. He knew that, but if didn't stop him from hesitant with telling her at all.

"What is it this time?" Maddie asked, not really expecting much. "Messed up homes? Skinned cats?"

"Four muggles were tortured and burned to death." James said, eyeing her carefully.

Maddie instantly froze, fully regretting her initial flippant attitude. She had heard far worse, granted, but that didn't stop her from feeling slightly nauseous at the thought. Salem was not a nice place, despite all it pretended to be, so it wasn't very shocking to hear that they had escalated into public killing of muggles. It was only a matter of time before her father's hatred and malice spread to more brutal things. It had started out innocently enough. As innocently as missing pets could be. It was before she was born, but she heard about it all the same. It was the talk of the town, the highlight of the social season. They had bragged about it, the local boys had, making it escalate to an almost competition of sorts. She hated the fact that she wasn't surprised by this new turn of events, but she couldn't help. Magical Salem was the worst kind of place and, unfortunately, she was painfully aware of that.

"Did it say who they were?" Maddie asked. It wasn't as if it mattered truly. She wouldn't know who they were. She wasn't allowed to know who they were.

"The Davies'." James said slowly.

The Davies'. She imagined they were a good family. With a mother who actually cooked all the meals and hugged her children. With a father who actually taught useful life skills instead of how to hate everybody and everything that was different from them. She imagined the children in that family actually cared about each other, unlike her and her siblings. She imaged they had been good, honest people. She imagined that they had liked to take family vacations together to exotic parts of the world. She imagined they loved each other.

"The Davie's." Maddie said slowly, sinking down into her broom, allowing it to sag slightly. "I imagine that it wasn't quick for them."

"It doesn't say." Sirius said.

"It doesn't say." Maddie repeated slowly. "It never does, does it?"

It seemed that no one in the British wizarding community truly understood what it was like in America and more specifically, Magical Salem. The witches and wizards didn't need an excuse, aside from blind hate, to attack some poor unsuspecting muggle. The hate, which had existed since the crossing over, teemed and steamed so far to the core, Maddie wasn't sure if the culture would ever be rid of it completely. People were dying every single day and no one seemed to fully grasp that. They didn't need Lord Voldemort, or whatever he was calling himself, to tell them to kill people to spread his message. They did it on their own, without provocation or motivation, and that was the scariest part.

They hated without rhyme or reason.

"Are you okay?" James asked carefully, eyeing her nervously.

"I don't know." Maddie shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut. She dropped her head into her hands, causing her broom to bobble even more dangerously. She felt her dirty hands shaking, smushing against her eyes as she dug them in. "No."

She was quite sure that her father and brother were involved, even if indirectly, with the brutal massacre of the innocent muggle family. He was always involved, with the dutiful William right by his side. "Who all knows?

"Well it was in the muggle paper, so I imagine quite a bit." James said, shooting Sirius nervous glances while Maddie rubbed her eyes even harder. "But only a few people around here know."

Maddie was silent for a moment before she turned to look at James. "I am assuming you want me to see what I can find out when I go home?"

"How di…"

"James Potter. Do not act like I am a fool. I know you and I know how desperate you are to help find out what you can." Maddie said, silencing him by finally looking up from her hands.

He, among others in her circle of friends, had taken to asking her to figure out as much as she could every time she went home. It had first started when they were in their fifth year and Philip Steele had announced that he was publicly supporting the anti-muggle and less than pureblood sentiment in Europe and the rest of the world. James had immediately asked her if she knew why. Besides the obvious reasons that is. She hadn't really known the true reason then, and she still didn't know it now. Truthfully she was about the worst person they could have asked to find out information. She spent her holidays holed up in her room, only emerging when she was forced. She didn't talk to them and they didn't talk to her. They only shared information with their most trusted colleagues, and Maddie was about as far from trusted in her family as she could be considered.

They didn't share anything with her that wasn't hate and anger.

"Well, only if you want to." James said slowly.

"I don't," Maddie said, seeing both of their faces fall slightly. "But I will."

Normally it would have alarmed her to think about spying on her own family. They terrified her to no end. She knew what they were capable of, she had witnessed what they were capable of. She loved her sister but that was about it. She wasn't really sure what had been stopping her from ratting them out so completely they would crumble. Perhaps it was because she impossibly scared of what her father would do to her if he found out. Perhaps it was because she had never really had a reason to before. However, none of that mattered at the moment.

She hated them, just like they hated her. She couldn't really care less if they were sent to Azkaban for the rest of their lives for what they did.

Sirius immediately pulled her into his chest, crushing her face against his sternum, the sound of their brooms knocking together shooting through her ears. She felt his hands squeezing her shoulders tightly, almost painfully, into him.

"Thanks Mads." He said into her hair, causing it to puff out around them. "I swear you won't regret it down the line."

Maddie couldn't help but let out a dry laugh.

She was positive she was going to regret saying yes. More than positive actually. She already regretted saying yes and she hadn't even done anything yet.

* * *

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	5. Chapter 5

_When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time. _

_-Maya Angelou_

* * *

_October 18, 1975_

William Alphard Steele had always known he was an undeniable ass. He had been informed by his uptight mother when he was very young that his father, his infouable father, had been the exact same when he was a young boy and even more so as a young man. William had always taken an immense amount of pride in that. He would do anything to be like his father; with his wealth and power he was the undeniable ruler of the magical world in the United States. Everybody wanted to be like Philip Steele, horrible personality traits and all. It wasn't as if his personality was pushing away any of his possible prospects as a suitor. The pureblood girls, as silly and twittering as they were, still flocked to him at every society event like he was the only person they wanted to marry. His parents still got offers, practically everyday it seemed, from the girls parents.

None of the vapid society girls really held his interest however.

The only thing, the only true and tangible thing, that seemed to capture his attention for more than five minutes was the cause.

He had proudly joined up as a Death Eater the day after he graduated from Hogwarts. It had been the best day of his relatively short life. It had been expected by his mother and father, as it was expected for all of the purelood boys, but he had done of his volition. He had loved every single minute of it. It had given him a sense of power, an undeniable pride that he had found was hard to come by when he was left to his own devices.

He felt powerful when he terrorized the local muggles and mudbloods.

He felt alive, unbelievably so, when he tormented those that were below him and inferior.

He felt the best, the most invigorated he had in his entire life when he was amongst the other Death Eaters. They understood him, with his little quirks and intricacies, and he understood them. He understood their hatred, because he could feel it burning so strongly within him he was surprised it wasn't obvious to those around him. He knew that they alone, besides his parents, understood what was right in the world and what was so indescribably wrong. Lord Voldemort was what the messed and infected world they found themselves in needed and William had decided, rather early on into his life, that he would follow him to the end.

He wasn't alone the day they had decided to kill the muggle family. They never went alone and they never acted without provocation. He was Rosier. Rosier was not the most likable guy, even by the rather low Death Eater standards, but William had always admired his brutality and malice. He didn't hold back when it came to the job, or jobs, that need to be done, and for that William had always found him to be good company to have.

They had come across the Davies' family in the middle of October, sitting exactly where they were told they were going to be sitting. They were picnicking out in one of the fields that were supposed to be considered Magical Salem land. The second William had seen them, laughing and smiling like they weren't in the wrong place, he had felt disgust boil up within him to the point where it was almost painful. It was a calm day, almost alarmingly so, when they had received the orders. The sun was shining and the temperature was fairly mild and out of the norm for the normally cold weather. Overall, most would have considered it to be a beautiful day.

It was obvious the muggles thought it to be.

He had never seen them before. He made it a point to avoid familiarity with insects. They all looked the same to him. Every muggle family was the same disgusting filth. They were all just a lowly, just as imperfect.

The man was rather plump and balding, with sweat glistening on the top of his head and seeping out from underneath his armpits. He had greying hair around his temples and beady little brown eyes that William was sure never blinked. He wore simple clothes, too simple for William's taste, consisting of a baggy t-shirt and a pair of faded blue jeans. He was laughing with his wife and their two children, if the little worms could even be called as such.

William thought they were more akin to dogs, mongrels, than children.

The wife wasn't much smaller than her large husband. She had thin, mousy brown hair that was cut too close to her face, and large blue eyes. She wore clothes startlingly similar to her husband. She attempted to run around with her kids, wheezing loudly as she did so, causing sweat to bead on her upper lip and forehead. The kids were both small and giggling, like all children tended to be. They both had brown hair and brown eyes that never seemed to focus on anything for longer than a couple of moments.

Rosier didn't seem to notice those features about them. All he noticed was their obvious lack of magic. That was all William could see after he got the initial look at them from their spot in the tree line that surrounded the clearing. Magical Salem's clearing. It was enough to send them both over the edge seeing them trudging all over with their clumsy feet and messy picnic.

Rosier had moved first, with an almost cat-like stealth, before he had made quick work of killing them. Rosier was known for making his victims suffer. He took joy in it. A wonderful sense of pride would spread across his face when he would see them die. He killed the children first, not bothering to look at their slumped forms before he moved on to the screaming and crying parents. They didn't suffer, not really. It was quick for them. With a flash of green they were gone. No pain, no suffering. Just death. It was quick and concise.

When Rosier was done he had tied them up and burned their bodies.

William had stood to the side, quietly watching and observing. Never in his life would he have thought to burn the bodies. He would have just left them for nature to take over. He didn't really think they deserved their extra time and effort. He didn't think they deserved anything from them at all.

"We must make an example out of them." Rosier had said, a large wicked smile sliding onto his pockmarked face. "We must show the world that a new day is coming."

And it was. A new day was coming. A day was coming when it would no longer be safe to not be magical. William knew that they would never stop until the world was back to how it should have been. Wizards and Witches above all else. The world was being swallowed up, swallowed up by those who were ahead. Eventually there would be nothing left but those who were strong enough. Nothing would be left those who were strong enough to survive, nothing but the wizards who knew where their place was. The war was meant to be the last was coming from all sides, from all different countries, and William was quite sure that no one would be able to do anything about it.

The war was coming.

* * *

Lily Evans was not a person to be trifled with. She, like her hair would suggest, was about as fiery as they came, and more intelligent than any in Gryffindor house. She had watched, with narrowed eyes and a stern expression, as her group of friends dealt with the news of the muggle family. The Gryffindor house had been quiet and somber the day after the news spread to the entire school. No one had really talked to each other. Some of the students, the ones of 'purer' blood, weren't terribly surprised by it. Others, like Lily herself, had been rather shocked and sick to her stomach for quite some time. That could have been her family, her mother Daisy, sister Petunia, and father Michael. That could have been her. She didn't feel like her usual self as she watched her friends deal with the news of the muggles. She felt very small, and for the first time in her life, very in touch with her muggle heritage.

No matter how many times you heard about it, senseless death never got any easier to deal with.

Lily had watched, secretly of course, as her friends dealt with it in varying ways. Maddie had been quiet, like always. Rory, eccentric and wild Rory, had been overcompensating in the humor department. However, despite their slightly off behavior, they all did their best to move forward with their lives, just like they did every other time.

Lily knew that Gryffindor wasn't the only house that was looking closely at what had happened with the muggle family. Slytherin house would surely be paying attention to the news. The might even know the entire, sick story. That house was riddled and infested with the spawn from the worst kind of people, in Lily's humble opinion. All of the boys were just waiting to be old enough to join up, and all of the girls, all of the simpering, vapid girls, were waiting to be old enough to give birth to more supporters. It was a sick cycle and trend that Lily wished she had never found out about in the first place.

As much as all of the houses in Hogwarts liked to pretend, a majority of the stereotypes were depressingly true. The Gryffindors hated the Slytherins and the Slytherins hated them right back with equal ferocity.

It was rather unfortunate and unlucky for all those involved, but it seemed that the fates were against both houses. They both got paired up for all classes, forcing them to spend much more time with each other than they would ever want.

To make matters worse, both houses were forced to sit though double potions on Monday mornings. It was quite possibly the worst thing that could have happened to them. Not only were they forced to sit down in the dungeon for three hours, but they were forced to do so with their least favorite people in the entire world.

Lily knew it was already hard enough for Maddie to get out of bed in the morning without the added insult of being forced to associate and interact with such wretched people.

It took every ounce of creativity and cleverness on Rory's part to get her out of bed.

Normally it took at least ten minutes to get her out of bed completely, but that was almost doubled when double potions with Slytherin's were involved.

Maddie wasn't exactly eager to be put into close quarters with them. She was forced to spend time with them during all of her parent's social events. They had long ago stopped trying to get her to see their point of view and had instead resorted to throwing snide insults at her every chance they got. They were not shy about what they said to her and made it abundantly clear that they thought she wasn't every worthy of her last name.

When she was finally dragged out of bed, she went about getting ready in the slowest possible way. She took her sweet time taking her steaming shower, getting dressed, and doing her hair and makeup. She ate as slow as possible and took her sweet time walking down to the cold dungeons.

She wasn't alone, however, which Lily was thankful for. She was quite sure Maddie would have gone insane if left alone with them.

Lily, Alice, Remus, and Rory had all made the appropriate grades on their O.W.L's to qualify for sixth year potions. Nobody was really shocked by that. They were shocked however by the fact that James and Sirius had also qualified to be in the class. As far as the entire school was concerned and aware, Sirius and James did nothing with their time but prank poor, unsuspecting, passersby.

As far as Lily was concerned, James and Sirius weren't smart enough to make it past first year, let alone be in O.W.L classes.

It was not that any Monday was any less awful than the last, nor would it be any less awful than the one that came after it, but it always felt like the world was ending as the sixth year Gryffindors made their way down to the dungeon.

"What did you think of question two?" Lily asked suddenly, bringing an effective end to the silence that had surrounded them all. "I thought it was rather simple, once you realized that it was talking about a bowtruckle root and…"

"Lily-pad, it's a bit early to be talking potions don't you think?" James said from somewhere behind them, throwing his long arm over her shoulder. Lily had to fight the involuntary shiver that went down her spine at the contact.

She looked up at him with so much disgust it was almost palpable. She shoved his arm off rather roughly, earning a chuckle from the normally quiet and reserved Alice. "No one asked you Potter."

"Retract the claws Evans." Sirius said sliding up on the other side of the red head. "We wouldn't want you to maim that handsome face." He gestured to James, winking at him in jest. "All of the ladies would be so wildly disappointed."

"Oh, shove off, Black." Lily said rushing forward, tossing her long curtain of red hair over her shoulder. She could feel all of their eyes on the back of her as she moved forward.

"How lovely is she?" James asked the now silent group, all of whom had their eyes trained onto Lily's retreating form. "I mean, even her anger is smoking."

Lily had to fight the bile. She pushed her legs to move faster from her group of friends. It was far too early to deal with James Potter.

"The loveliest." Rory said, rolling her eyes at the silly look on James' face. She watched as Lily's red hair swung behind her back.

"No need for the sarcasm, Rory." James said, shaking his head. He moved over to her, placing himself directly next to her. "It's unbecoming on you."

Rory rolled her eyes, shoving him slightly. She looked down to her Hogwarts uniform, feeling the familiar disappointment wash over her. The Hogwarts uniforms were stifling and dull, at best. She had gotten in trouble about a hundred times in her first year for altering the uniform to be more creative and unique. They didn't let her wear her knee high mismatched socks, citing that they were a distraction to the other students. They didn't let her wear her favorite bright green vest, saying that it was against code. And perhaps the worst crime of all was that they didn't let her wear her brightly colored glasses. They claimed they scared the younger students.

Rory was quite sure the younger kids could use a good scare.

"Do we have to go?" Maddie asked, slowing her feet down to an almost snail's pace. She just knew what was waiting for her in the dungeons.

On the very first day of class she had been paired with Walden MacNair.

Walden MacNair was a supremely awful person. He was tall and slender, with brown hair that he kept slicked back against his too skinny head. Not only was he particularly creepy and leered way too much for his own good, but he never hesitated to take the chance to send snide comments towards her, or say something creepy about her sister, or to mess up her potion when she wasn't looking. He was cruel, mean, sadistic, and above all else, evil. He would ramble on and on about all the sick things he had done, despite the fact that she ignored every single word he said.

"I try and get you to skip all the time." Sirius said loudly, reaching his hand out to her shoulder. "What was wrong with all of those times?"

"Well, you only want to skive off classes when you've done something wrong," She paused, slowing down even further. "Or when you're getting into Kitty Kakowski's too-small panties."

Sirius smirked over at her, wagging his eyebrows. "Well if you would skip with me, maybe I could get into yours."

"That's disgusting." Alice said, drawing everybody's attention over to her. "Maddie would never stoop so low."

"Did little Alice just make a joke?" James asked, hooting with laughter at the offended look on Sirius' face.

"I don't know what the point is in denying it Mads." Sirius said, pulling Maddie into his side even closer. "You know I'm irresistible."

"I've learned to cope and resist your charms." Maddie said, poking him in his side. He leaned down slightly, causing his black hair to fall into his handsome face, before sliding his hand lower on her back for a moment before he heard a very loud cough, forcing him to step back from her. His fingers danced upon her lower back as he moved back, making her roll her eyes. Sirius eyed her for a moment, sending her a roughish wink, before he finally put a respectable amount of space between them.

"We're going to be late." Remus said, looking at all of them in exasperation. He shot Sirius a stern look before turning his gaze on the rest of them. "We wouldn't want to keep Slughorn waiting for our riveting company."

"And riveting it is!" James shouted, making all of them cringe at the volume in his voice so early in the morning.

Maddie couldn't help but feel a bit of dread filling up her stomach. She hated potions. She hated Walden MacNair. And she hated being forced to spend her time in the dank, dark, dungeons. It reminded her way too much of home. The comfort level was about that of her living room and the color scheme was startlingly similar to her kitchen.

They all made their way there, more somber than before. None of them, save for Remus and Lily, actually enjoyed potions. Maddie had to be pulled along, rather roughly, by Rory.

When they finally arrived at the room they were greeted by the most noxious smell any of them had ever encountered. It filled up all of their senses so completely it almost made them gag. The room was steaming with a noxious looking mixture of gases, making it look like everything in the large room was fuzzy around the edges. They were all tempted to turn around and walk right back out until they were greeted by a loud, boisterous voice from the opposite side of the room. Horace Slughorn was standing opposite from them, smiling widely like he usually did. The Slytherins, and Lily, were already gathered around him, looking over at the group of Gryffindor's standing awkwardly in the door frame. He gestured to them with his large arms enthusiastically, completely oblivious to the glaring students around him. Maddie felt her hair frizz instantly, framing her face in thick masses of heavy hair as she stepped into the room.

Maddie glanced over at her friends for a moment before she walked begrudgingly across the room. She greeted Slughorn with a small smile before sliding up next to Lily. The tall red head glanced over at her, annoyance still written on her pretty face. Maddie reached out a hand, squeezing her fingers together before she pinched Lily lightly on the arm, causing her to look over at her sharply. She smiled at Lily until she managed to get her to smile back, albeit reluctantly.

"Alright now where was I?" Slughorn asked, looking around at the students who had been there. He looked around the hazy room for a moment, rubbing his thick chin with pudgy fingers. "Ah yes, the Galuinim Fortestcium." He used his wand to uncover a rather large cauldron with a flourish. He seemed thoroughly impressed with himself as he gazed out at the sea of students, waiting to see if they were impressed with the potion, or more importantly, him.

Maddie leaned back involuntarily when Slughorn uncovered the potion. Even before it was uncovered it was releasing an alarming amount of green gas, causing the entire room to smell like the backside of a farm animal. It was bubbling and steaming out over the top of the cauldron and dripping onto the stained floor in giant green globs. The globs steamed vaguely, letting off stinking masses of air that wafted over them.

"As you can see, it's a very enthusiastic potion." Slughorn said with his characteristic laugh. "Now who can tell me what the Galuinim Fortestcium potion is used for?"

Like clockwork, Lily raised her pale hand, swinging it in front of her slightly. Lily always knew every single answer in every single class. Even in transfiguration, which Lily admitted was her worst subject, she was the first to raise her hand to answer the questions. Maddie knew that it would never change, but it didn't stop her from being slightly annoyed at the red head. She couldn't help but roll her eyes at Lily's enthusiasm, sinking back into her hips as she prepared herself for a longwinded Evans answer.

"Ah Ms. Evans." Slughorn said, doing a horrible job of hiding his favoritism. He smiled over at her, his ruddy cheeks flushing with excitement at anticipation of the answer she was going to produce.

"It is used to incapacitate the drinker in an almost comatose state. They can hear everything and see everything that is happening to them, but they cannot do anything about it. It is often hard to use because of its pungent odor and less than conspicuous color." Lily rattled off with pride.

"Very good." Slughorn beamed over at her. "Ten points to Gryffindor."

As usual, Lily was doing her part to contribute to their house. Everyone in the room was quite used to Lily answering everything. In fact, it was such common knowledge that even the Slytherin's found it to be repetitive to make fun of her for it. Instead they opted for stony silence.

Maddie felt Rory poke her side, drawing her attention over to her shorter friend. She smirked at her for a moment before she gestured over to Sirius and James. It seemed that in the short time that they had been in the large dungeon, the two of them, unbeknownst to the majority of the room, had managed to find a target for their never ending pranking. They were currently hovering behind the only Slytherin in the room to be standing by themselves. In general, Camden Forsynth wasn't exactly considered to be the most formidable of opponents. He was small, feeble, and altogether wimpy. He followed his fellow Slytherin's like they were controlling his life and he never really made any decisions on his own. It was rather unfortunate for him that Sirius and James had picked on those particular character traits early on in their school career. He had been one of their favorite targets ever since.

Maddie watched them, still doing her best to look like she was paying attention to Slughorn's rambling, as they hovered ever closer to Camden. She could see both of them fumbling around in their robes for a moment before they finally pulled out two very long, very fake looking snakes.

She had been around them enough to know what they were planning.

They moved forward until they were practically on top of Camden, smirking back and forth at each other. Within moments they had dropped the fake snakes onto Camden's head, causing the boy to scream out loud like a little girl.

It was entirely expected and entirely muggle in nature.

She knew they did that to add insult to injury to the proud Slytherin's. It was one thing to be pranked by magical means, but it was another thing entirely to be pranked by something they deemed so lowly and beneath them.

The entire room was silent for a moment as Camden bounced back and forth, squirming in an attempt to get the fake snakes off of him. The only sound was James and Sirius roaring with laughter from behind him, clutching onto each other in an attempt to stay standing. Maddie couldn't help but roll her eyes at the two of them. They had done that to Camden at least a hundred times and it always yielded the same results. She would have thought by the time they were sixth years they would have found a new way to entertain themselves.

It seemed like an eternity before Sirius and James managed to calm themselves down.

"Thank you boys," Slughorn said looking at the two of them with a glare on their face. "For that riveting distraction. Now if you two are quite done, I think it's time we all got started in brewing our potions. You will find the ingredients list and instructions on page 236. The supplies are in the closet."

With those words all of the students went their separate ways. Maddie could still hear James and Sirius chortling slightly as they went over to Rory and Alice respectively. Every single time they had class Maddie couldn't really help but feel resentful of the rest of her friends. They got to spend an hour and a half laughing and spending time together. She got to spend an hour and a half spending time with the biggest ass in the entire school.

Walden didn't even bother to look up at her when she came to stand next to him. He was bent down over his book, running his forefinger along the list of ingredients with a scowl on his face. Maddie was already entirely used to his form of operating. In fact, more often than not, she returned it in a zealous fashion. She reached her hand up to her hair to pull it back into a very scraggly pony-tail before she fixed her unhappy gaze up his lanky form.

It finally took the fact that they were required to brew the potion together for Walden to look up at her and address her.

"Madeleine," He said in his deep voice, regarding her with a steeling glare. She could see some of the grease in his hair gooping slightly from the humidity of the room.

"Maddie." She said simply, sitting herself down onto the rickety lab chair. They had the same conversation every single time they encountered each other.

Maddie wasn't exactly sure when it had happened, but at some point in her life, she had realized just how much she hated being called Madeline. She had insisted to Rory for years that she hated being called Maddie, or any variation thereof, never allowing herself to be nicknamed. However, almost overnight, she had found she truly hated her full name. It made her sick to her stomach to hear her full name, to hear it rolling out of people's mouths like it wasn't the bane of her existence. She couldn't explain it, nor did she try to, so she just decided to ignore it. It wasn't really a big deal with the people who liked to call her Maddie anyway. They preferred the shorter version. It made her seem much more human, much less Steele-like.

"Whatever." Walden snapped, glaring angrily up at her. His angular face contorted, making him look much more devil like than normal. "Go to the supply room and get the supplies."

Maddie was entirely used to being ordered around like the way Walden was attempting to. In her home she was the lowest in the hierarchy. She had no power whatsoever in her life when she was home and everybody, including those outside of her family, knew it. It was not uncommon for her to be ordered around by the uppity pureblood brats who attended school besides her. They thought they were being funny, but in reality Maddie thought they couldn't have been more annoying if they tried.

"Get it yourself, MacNair." She spat back, sitting down further into her seat stubbornly. She began to trace circles in her skirt, ignoring the withering glare he was giving her.

"You can't talk to me like that, Steele." He said standing up to his full height. She felt him move closer to her as she kept her gaze planted firmly on her skirt. "Everybody knows you can't talk to anybody like that. You should know that it's not your place."

"I can talk to whoever I want however I want." Maddie said ignoring the fact that his face was becoming redder and redder as she finally looked up at him. "You are in no position to order me around."

If anything could be said for Slytherin house it was the fact that it did a fabulous job of fostering anger issues.

"Not according to your father." He seethed, glaring down at her.

That shut her up.

Maddie was entirely aware of the number of people looking over at the two of them. Normally their little spats and tiffs were kept fairly quiet. This, however, had drawn the attention of practically the entire class. She glanced around the room nervously, gauging the two different types of emotions she saw on the faces around her. Some were angry, just like Walden. Those weren't the ones that upset her. No the ones that upset her were the looks of pity she was receiving from her friends.

She could see Sirius eyeing her from his spot next to a very confused looking Alice. He was standing, hands clenched at his sides as he watched Walden glare down at her. Maddie did her best to avoid his gaze as she shifted even more uncomfortably in her seat. She felt, for what felt like the thousandth time in her life, like she was about a small as an ant.

"Don't talk about my father." She said quietly. She felt her hands grip together so tightly underneath the table it was painful. Her skirt wrinkled horribly as she attempted to get her hands to stop shaking. She hated it when people brought up her family when she was at school. It was the only place that she was away from them. She didn't want them anywhere near her, whether physically or mentally.

She hated that he voice came out so quietly. It always seemed to come out quietly when she was nervous or panicky, and she was never as panicky as when she was faced with dealing with her family.

"Everybody back to work." Slughorn said, eyeing the two fighting students warily. "Back to your stations."

Maddie looked up suddenly, glancing around the room. Sirius, James, and Remus had all moved slightly towards her hard glares on their faces. She could see them eyeing Walden angrily from their spots, making the others around them slightly uncomfortable. James sidled up to Sirius, placing his hand on his shoulder before whispering something harshly in his ear before stepping back. Maddie gave them one last look before she looked back over at Walden. He was sitting in his own seat, shooting her angry glances every once and a while. They sat like that for what seemed like an eternity before Walden leaned over to her.

"You're crazy if you think your father won't hear about this."


	6. Chapter 6

_We are time's subjects, and time bids be gone._

_-William Shakespeare_

* * *

_November 1, 1975_

Maddie was rather impressed with how long her father managed to refrain from reprimanding her for her perceived backtalk and disrespect. She had expected the large, black, intimidating family owl to come swooping her towards her at breakfast every morning for a very tense two weeks before it finally came. She felt her stomach clench up involuntarily as she remembered, rather vividly, all of the times in her previous years of schooling that she received one of those letters.

For the most part they had been informatory letters. Her father, and mother occasionally, liked to keep her up to date on all that was happening back in Magical Salem, resulting in an almost monthly stream of news bulletins via her family's letters. Sometimes, more often than Maddie liked to admit to herself, the letters were disciplinary in nature. Those were the worst. They always made her slightly nauseous and sickly feeling as she scanned them over and over again.

Rory and Maddie, more so the former than the latter, had always had a nasty habit of staying out much later than they needed to when it was less than what was considered to be ideal. During their fourth year they had stayed out so late they had fallen asleep in the manky, dusty floor, only to be found the next morning by the nasty groundskeeper and his equally nasty apprentice, Argus. They had been given detention for a week. Rory had thought it was riotously hilarious. Maddie had thought it was horribly embarrassing and traumatizing.

That was still during the time in Rory's life that her absentee parents still pretended to have a vested interest in what she did. Both she and Maddie had received letters from home. Maddie's had been a bit more strongly worded than Rory's, however. They had calmed down considerably after they had both been reprimanded.

That was the last time either of them had received letters from home for disciplinary issues.

It had been two solid years without a disciplinary letter when Maddie's family owl came swooping in a quiet morning two weeks after the incident in the Potions' classroom.

Just like every other morning, the sixth year Gryffindor students were divided into two separate, but distinct groups; those who sat with Lily and those who sat with James. Lily, as much as everyone tried to convince her otherwise, couldn't really stand James. It came as no surprise to anyone that she chose not to spend more time with him than was necessary. Rory, while not against Lily, had always found her to be nothing short of petty and immature in the way Lily treated James. It was her favorite breakfast time activity to bother Lily about it as much as humanly possible.

Maddie just liked to stay out of it and eat her jam and toast in peace.

"Don't you think Kitty looks absolutely ravishing this morning?" Sirius asked loudly, causing everyone to look up at him from their respective breakfasts. Maddie froze as she attempted to spread the grape jam over her toast perfectly even, her hands dropping slightly as she looked up at him. "I mean, honestly."

He was currently eyeing the leggy, Ravenclaw brunette in question with a look that Maddie had seen far too many times for her liking.

Remus looked up from his morning book, peering over at the girl Sirius was currently ogling. Maddie glanced around her, hands sinking all the way down to the table as she watched his eyes rove up and down Kitty's body. Maddie glanced over at Remus, finally managing to bring her less than symmetrical toast up to her mouth.

"She looks the same as she always does." Remus said dryly, spooning a large amount of porridge into his mouth from behind his book.

"Skanky, easy, and perpetually available you mean?" Rory said suddenly from behind Remus. She smirked down at all of them for a moment, before she slid into the seat next to James, pulling her book bag along the floor behind her. She smushed herself in next to James, forcing him to shoot her a withering look as he slid down the bench to allow her to sit.

"How nice of you to join us, Aurora." James said loudly, ignoring the scowl she shot at him. "I missed you yesterday evening."

"I was busy." Rory said simply, reaching her hand over to Peter's over flowing plate to grab one of his croissants. "Late night with my Potions book. You knew that."

Peter watched as she popped half of the croissant into her mouth, crumbs spilling down her face and chin, before he finally spoke up in a shaky voice. "You do know there is a croissant right in front of you?"

She shoved the rest of it in her mouth, making her cheeks puff out slightly, before she swallowed it thickly. She reached over and took a loud, mushy swig from Remus' pumpkin juice before she finally fixed Peter with a dazzling smile. "But yours is already buttered, Pete." She finished off with a large smirk followed by a playful wink. His mouth, which had been poised to answer her, snapped shut immediately, revealing the deep blush that spread over his entire pudgy face.

"Stop embarrassing him, Rorster." Sirius said, fighting back his characteristic, bark like laughter.

Rory looked up from shoving another stolen piece of bread into her mouth, rolling her large eyes, as she coughed slightly at the amount of food she had in her mouth.

"I've heard that chewing is useful in the eating process." Maddie said simply, not even bothering to look up from the book she had pulled out. She heard Rory snort loudly, making her glance up reluctantly. Her toast, which had gone uneaten, sat in front of her, wafting grapey smells up to her. She eyed Rory before she saw her hand reach over to her plate, snaking the jam covered toast out from under her, leaving her with only a small smirk.

"You're going to get fat." James said, while he too, stuffed his face full of all the food he could get his hands on.

"We can be fat together." She said, poking him in his side with one of her jam and butter smeared fingers.

"Such a charming thought, Rory." Remus said simply, rolling his eyes before he returned to his paper.

"You should eat something too, Mads."

Maddie immediately looked up from the page she had been attempting to read. Sirius had leaned over towards her, scooting himself so that his hips were pressed against hers. His hair fell into his face as he leaned towards her, throwing one of his long arms over her shoulder, pulling her even closer to him. She attempted to smile up at him, throwing her messy ponytail over her shoulder. She felt his hand move down her back, wrapping around her to reach towards her book. He plucked it out of her hands before she had even realized it, forcing her to look around at him. His grey eyes sparkled with mirth as he took her book, her favorite book, and put it in his rarely used book bag.

"I am not hungry." Maddie said simply, attempting to reach around him to retrieve her book. He stopped her with a strong arm, forcing her to sit back down.

"You're too skinny."

"I thought you said I was beautiful how I was?" Maddie said, finding it hard to stop smirking at the trapped look on his face. Sirius coughed uncomfortably, reaching for a large bite of gooey egg to distract himself with. He shoved it into his mouth, shooting her an odd look.

"When's the post coming, you think?"' Peter asked suddenly, drawing everybody's distracted attention over to him.

"You expecting a letter, Pete?" Sirius said thickly, forcing himself to swallow the massive bite he was currently gorging himself on. "Got a secret, steamy pen pal you've neglected to tell me about?"

"Shut up Sirius." Maddie said, shoving him roughly, forcing him to cough on the juice he was trying to clear his throat with. "Peter is probably way more romantic on paper than you are." Peter shifted uncomfortably, blushing such a deep scarlet, they were all surprised blood didn't come spurting out of his pores.

"Thanks, Maddie."

"No problem, Pete." Maddie said, ignoring the laughter from all sides of her.

"No need to get sassy, Miss Steele." Sirius said, shoving her back lightly.

"I am only copying you, Mister Black." Maddie said simply, earning a loud scoff from Sirius.

He opened his mouth to respond, with what Maddie assumed was going to be a witty and well thought out response, only to be cut off by the sound of hundreds of pairs of flapping and fluttering wings filling up the entire hall. Maddie immediately looked up, searching for any sign of the large black owl that her family had used for as long as she could remember. It was an instinct, by this point in her life, to always scan for her family owl. She had loved the owl, Apollo, when she was much younger, back before it brought her bad news and anger from her parents. Now the sight of the bird made her slightly queasy. It used to fly around her, when she would go on her long walks, and hoot appreciatively at her. Now all it seemed to do was bring her things she didn't want.

When she spotted his large black wings amongst the mass of barn owls, she felt her breath hitch in her dry throat. She could see the familiar grey envelope attached to its leg. She it was from her father.

He only ever used grey envelopes.

It had been too much of her to ask and to think that her parents wouldn't reprimand her for what happened with Walden MacNair.

She watched as the massive bird flew closer and closer to her before it finally landed with a solid thus in front of her. It extended out its muscly leg to her, waiting patiently for her to remove the letter from it with shaky hands. She felt her arms tensing up as she reached up to remove the smooth, grey envelope. She was vaguely aware of Sirius ripping off a piece of toast and handing it to the bird before turning his attention to Maddie and the letter in her hand. Apollo sat there for a moment before he took off with a swoosh of his wings, fluttering the papers and liquid on the table as he went.

Maddie felt the grey letter weighing heavily in her hands as she attempted to open the top of the envelope. It felt like it weighted a hundred pounds, instead of mere ounces.

The last time she had gotten a letter so thick from home, she had been punished severely for a solid, miserable month.

"He could just be writing to congratulate you on that 'O' you got last week in Charms." Sirius said, scooting closer to her. He leaned over her shoulder, throwing his arm around her as he peered down at the letter in her small hands. He could hear and see all of their friends quieting down as they looked over at Maddie, mixed looks of concern and curiosity mixed on their faces. He shot a quick shake of the head towards James and Rory, indicating to them to go back to their previous conversation. "Come on, Mads. It can't be that bad."

"It can actually." Maddie said, using her finger to reach into the envelope to grab onto the smooth parchment inside.

"Do you want me to read it?" Sirius asked, quietly.

"No, it'll be fine." She paused, slipping the letter out of the high quality envelope. "I'll be fine." She said the last part more to herself than to Sirius.

She let the envelope fall to the table. She looked at it for a moment, taking note of the scrawling, familiar writing, before she turned her attention back to the letter in her hand.

_Madeleine, _

_It has been brought to your mother and I's attention that you had a rather unfortunate altercation with Walden MacNair recently. I had thought, and as you know I am never mistaken, that we had made it abundantly, inescapably clear, that that sort of behavior was completely unacceptable. Not only is it an embarrassment upon this family, but it is an embarrassment upon you as a young lady of good standing in our society. We have made it clear, multiple times as I am sure you are aware, that you to the age that this kind of behavior is no longer redeemable in our eyes, nor is it ignorable. You are a member of the Steele family, and it is time you start acting as such. This family is one of the oldest pureblood families in existence and you are representing it with every action you take. Your mother and I have looked the other direction, rather disgustedly, as you associated with those who are obviously beneath your station, but this kind of behavior and disrespect to your peers is something we will not tolerate in any way, shape, or form. _

_As you should be aware of, we have recently finalized Abigail's engagement. We will announce it formally and officially to all of those in our society at our annual Christmas party that we are hosting this coming December. _

_You will be on your best behavior until then. _

_I will not tolerate any other unfortunate and regrettable incidents from you. I trust I do not need to need to tell you twice that this should not become a habit. You are to the age that marriage is now officially a prevailing priority that we are having to focus on. We will not be the laughing stock of our entire community due to the fact that we can't marry our daughter off due to her poor behavior and even poorer attitude. _

_I will not hear about something like this from anyone about you again, Madeleine. _

_I trust I do not need to remind you of the consequences of your behavior should this sort of behavior continue. _

_Behave, and we will see you soon. _

_Philip Steele_

Maddie sat there for a moment, reading and rereading the letter over and over again, trying desperately to grasp the words that were on the fancy paper. She felt her hands release the letter onto the table heavily after a moment of trying to understand, her hands still primed into a holding position. She felt very odd after reading the letter from her father. There was no emotion in her father's letter, only hatred and anger. There was not care or concern, save for that focused on the maintenance of the family's reputation. She felt herself slump into the smooth wooden bench heavily, pushing the nasty letter even farther away from her.

She couldn't really even begin to imagine her sister, her sweet and polite sister, walking down the aisle towards a man that was deemed to be good enough in her society. She knew her would be appallingly cruel, mean spirited, and controlling in every sense of the word. Maddie was quite sure her sister didn't deserve that sort of life at all. Maddie couldn't even fathom what person her parents would have chosen for Abby to marry, but whoever they were, they were likely to be someone that would eat her up and spit her back out.

Rory had immediately, in the awkward silence that had coated all of them at the table, snatched the letter up as soon as Maddie pushed away from her. Everybody watched her as she perused the letter, shooting furtive glances at Maddie's blank face.

"It could have been substantially worse," Rory said, peering over at Maddie with her large, owlish eyes. She glanced back down for a moment, before she glanced back up at her over the letter. "I suppose."

"So, Miss Abby is getting married?" James asked, leaning over Rory's shoulder heavily to look at the letter. "Who's the lucky bloke?"

"Somebody who isn't good enough for her." Maddie said dryly, snatching the letter from Rory before it could be passed around to the other people at the table. She crumpled the letter up immediately, enjoying the feeling of the crushed paper in her shaking hands.

"Your sister is perfect." James said, fixing Maddie with a sly wink. "I could always marry her."

"That would crush poor Lily." Rory said simply. "Besides, you're a little young and," She paused, lips curling up into a taunting smirk. "Immature for such a mature lady."

Sirius let out a loud snort of laughter, nudging Maddie slightly at the joke he assumed she would find funny. When he saw her blank face he immediately back tracked, leaning down so that he could whisper discretely into her ear.

"I'll be at Christmas you know." Sirius said, making her hair fan out with his breathing. "We'll be able to sit in the corner and cause hell."

Maddie managed to let out small laugh, before she sat back into her seat further.

"No we won't." She said, looking up at his close face. She could see the freckles that were almost invisible against his tan skin. "Was I the only one who read the letter or…"

"It will be subtle."

"I can't do anything to get in trouble."

"We'll see about that." Sirius said into her ear, winking at her when she leaned back to look at him.

He looked at her for a moment, taking in the overall uncomfortable look on her face. Her cheeks, while normally flushed and healthy looking, were abysmally pale and sickly looking. Her eyes seemed to be slightly whispy and misty looking. They looked bloodshot, which concerned him. He knew the affects her father and family and their subsequent letters had on her. This time was really no different than all of the others. His arm pulled her closer, before he rested his head on top of hers.

"I am going to try and convince my parents to let you come over after the party and stay for a while."

"I do not know…" Maddie said slowly, leaning back from him so that she could look at his concerned face. "Why?"

"Your family is crazy, that's why." He said simply, rolling his eyes at her hesitation. "Plus, I hate being at my house alone, just as much as you do. You're really doing me a favor, not the other way around."

"Maddie, you can't really say no to that face." James said gesturing to the innocent look Sirius was sporting.

Maddie looked back over at him, feeling a reluctant smile sliding onto her face. "I suppose not."

"That's my girl." James said reaching out his arms across the table and grabbing a hold of her shoulders. He pulled her over the table into a tight, uncomfortable hug. She bumped into the plates on the table, causing them to move and clang together.

"You know, Maddie, from this angle I can almost see up your…"

"Maybe you two can sneak out and come visit me in the Congo." Rory said, roughly pulling James back from crushing Maddie in his tight hug. She glared at Sirius as Maddie looked over at him, rolling her eyes at his comment. She shot a look over to him, before turning back to the others across the table from her. "It would be so much fun for all of us. We would all come back so tan and beautiful."

"Aurora Knight. You know my hair can't handle that much humidity." Sirius said with a completely serious look on his face.

"You're a girl." Remus said, shaking his head.

"A devilishly handsome one." Sirius said, batting his dark eyelashes over at the sandy blonde. "It's no wonder I get asked out so much."

"I do not know why I am friends with you." Remus said, standing up with his book bag. He turned look at Maddie, ignoring the look on Sirius' face. "You'll be okay Maddie?"

"Yes. I am sure Sirius, James, and Rory won't let me dwell on it too long." Maddie offered him a small smile as he returned it before he turned to Peter.

"We should go work on that assignment Peter. You can't afford another failing grade."

Peter let out a heavy sigh before he stood up heavily. "Good luck Petey." Sirius said loudly, drawing attention over to the group of them. "Make me proud!"

Maddie couldn't help but smile at the antics of her friends. If anyone could make her feel better about her father and her home situation, it was the group of rowdy people sitting around her. They were not exactly the kind of people to let her wallow in self-pity. They had said, on multiple occasions, that there wasn't really any time for that sort of thing. It was stupid and pointless, in their humble opinion, to feel bad about things that she couldn't control. They cared about her enough to tolerate all of the ridiculous stuff that plagued her from Magical Salem.

She looked at each of her friends in turn, fully appreciating what each of them did for her individually.

Remus, quiet and observant, always helped her to see the logical side of every situation. James always made her smile when she was feeling sad and scared. Peter always offered her food to make her feel better, despite her protests of not wanting to get fat. Rory always, never fail, would hold her when she would cry. And Sirius, well Sirius was always the one to listen to her. He was the only one that knew exactly what went on in her household because the exact same horrible things happening in his. He knew why she was so scared of her father, because he, while he would never admit it to anyone but her, was scared of his own parents. He knew why she was so terrified of doing anything wrong.

* * *

Maddie had expected word of her little spat with Walden to spread like wildfire. It had spread, however, much farther and much faster than she would have ever thought possible. She couldn't go five feet within the castle without hearing the pureblood children whispering about it in hushed voices and horribly disguised glances. It seemed almost unheard of for a Steele to cause such a stir amongst the elite families.

She felt the stares on her back hot and withering as she made her way to all of her classes. It made her skin crawl and her hands sweat slightly. Apparently a pureblood child hadn't bucked the system as much as she did since Andromeda Black.

The sad part was Maddie didn't really see what she did that was so horribly wrong.

She was always respectful and obedient when it came to her parents. She never yelled at them and she never disobeyed what they told her to do. She didn't quite understand why it was such a big deal that she had talked back to Walden MacNair. He was considered to be lower on the totem pole than her family and normally that would mean it wouldn't be a big deal if she had talked back to him like she had. She didn't like him and everyone knew that he didn't like her, so it shouldn't have been that surprising that they had fought with each other.

Apparently it was, however.

The boys that were always at all of the society events glared at her as she passed by them, whispering obscene things behind her back as she went. The girls that she was forced to pretend to care about would roll their eyes at her, making it very clear whatever veil of friendliness between them was gone. They were not shy about what they said about her. Sirius laughed it off, just like he did with everything else. Maddie couldn't however, making her weeks in school in that November rather miserable. She for the life of her could not figure out how they knew the full story, having inflated it far past the truth.

"You would think they would have better things to focus on besides a stupid little fight." Maddie snapped in their third class of the day she received her letter from home. Sirius smirked up at her, thoroughly enjoying the fiery look on her face.

"They're purebloods. They have nothing better to do." He said, pulling out her chair for her.

She smiled widely at him, curtsying playfully with a quick 'thank you sir', before turning back to the pulled our chair.

"You and I find better things to do." She said, plopping down into her seat. "Like not being horrible people. That's always a fulfilling way to spend our time."

"You do have a point." He said, leaning on his arms heavily. "Speaking of other things. My snot of a brother has convinced my parents to come watch the match between us and Slytherin next week."

"Oh how dare he." Maddie said, smirking over at the annoyed look on his face. "I mean, how could little Reggie think that was acceptable?"

"How dare he is right." He said, completely missing her sarcasm. "So I need you to beat the living shit out of him, if you would be so kind."

"Well when you put it that way," She paused, patting him on the shoulder. "How could I not?"

"That's why you're my favorite Mads."

"I am your favorite because I am the only one who tolerates you long enough to listen to your crazy schemes."

"They aren't crazy." Sirius said, rolling his eyes at her, before feigning that he was paying attention to the professor setting up in the front of the classroom.

"Do you think Walden told everybody?" Maddie asked suddenly, changing the subject completely. Sirius looked around at her, eyebrows raised. "I mean, do you think everybody will be talking about it at Christmas?"

"So what if he did?" He said, glancing around the room. He could tell that they were being listened to by the students closest to them. "He's a right foul git and you know that."

"Apparently my family doesn't think so." Maddie said, leaning back in her rickety chair.

"Who cares what they think?" Sirius asked loudly, drawing even more looks over to them. "Now, I think you need something to cheer you up. What with your sister's impending life ending marriage and the wonderful letter you received this morning."

"The last time you tried to cheer me up I ended up in the hospital wing."

"That was unfortunate." Sirius said, letting out a small laugh. "But this time no fire will be involved."

Maddie opened her mouth, only to be cut off by the general hush of the room as their professor quieted the class with an intense look. Professor Binns was quite possibly the most boring individual, alive or dead, to ever walk the face of the earth. He droned on and on about history of magic not caring whether or not people listened to him. He immediately launched into his lecture about wizarding migration, instantly putting everybody into a state of exhaustion and slumber.

"Come on Maddie." Sirius said, reaching his arm over to her chair. He pulled it closer to his, ignoring the loud noise it made. "Please."

"I don't know." Maddie said slowly. As soon as Sirius had spoken she instantly thought about the letter she had just received from her father that morning. He had been very clear that he didn't want her doing anything to mess up her sister's engagement.

"No one will know you were involved." He said in a whisper. Maddie looked around for a moment before she looked back at him. He was looking at her with his stormy grey eyes, practically begging her to say yes. His black hair had fallen slightly into his handsome face, making him look almost innocent. Almost. "Please Mads. It has been so long since me and you have pranked just the two of us."

"I have homework…"

"That is a horrible excuse and you know it. I am not going to take a no on this one." Sirius said, fixing his face into a face that was supposed to look stern.

"Fine." She said with a loud sigh. "I'll kill you if you get me in trouble, however."

She knew as soon as she agreed it was the wrong decision. She knew that look on his face and it had never meant anything good for her. He had sported that look when he had filled her book bag with frogs in their second year. Every time he pranked a Slytherin, or anyone else for that matter, he was never without that look. Sometimes she benefited from it, but more often than not it never really meant good things for those around him.

He pulled her into his chest, crushing her face into his uniform shirt.

"It'll be fun Maddie." He said, giving her one more squeeze. "I promise."

* * *

**REVIEW!**


	7. Chapter 7

_We must use time creatively._

_-Martin Luther King, Jr._

* * *

_November 17, 1975_

The overall chatter and surprise about Maddie's fight, or lack thereof, with Walden MacNair had died down as the semester progressed further into the bitingly cold November. The pureblood's had gossiped for a time, which Maddie deemed to be more lengthy than necessary, before moving onto the next big topic of interest on the never ending and revolving docket. The upcoming social event season was all they could think about and talk about, finally giving Maddie some much needed peace from the constant glares and whispers behind her back.

Those who were deemed to be important and socially special enough couldn't stop flitting about, giggling, squawking, and gawking wherever they went. The girls couldn't keep themselves, although Maddie highly doubted they tried, from speculating about which new couples would be announcing their engagement, as was usually customary at the Christmas parties, and the boys couldn't stop talking about how much the girls would be willing to let loose their morals and reservations on New Year's Eve.

At the previous New Year's Eve party, which were always hosted by the Black's, three girls had been caught sneaking out with a group of seventh year Slytherin boys when they should have been meeting suitors. Their mothers had been so appalled and mortified they were pulled out of school for the coming semester. It had been the topic of choice for months on end and would more than likely be until something new came along to talk about in the circles of pureblood women and housewives. Maddie imagined she would be on the short list for the scandal spot.

At the last major Christmas party of last season, hosted by the Malfoys, they had announced the engagement of the eldest son to the beautiful Narcissa Black. It had been entirely expected at the time. All anybody had talked about leading up to the announcement is who would be the next big expectation. Normally everyone could pretty well predict who would be the next couple to get married, but occasionally, if they were lucky, a new, unexpected couple would announce their impending nuptials out of the blue.

The end of the year was what most people in the pureblood community waited for.

Maddie, as well as Sirius, hated it with as much vigor and feeling as she could possibly muster.

"It isn't even Thanksgiving yet." Maddie said incredulously, leaning against one of the many cold stone walls in the dungeon. "You would think they would find something else to blather and blubber on about."

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" Sirius asked, not looking up from his spot leaning out from behind the statue they were both currently hiding behind.

"It is a holiday for food." Maddie said, shoving the back of his thigh with her right foot. "I am surprised you and James haven't started celebrating it in full yet."

"Is the only thing you associate with me food?"

"Oh come off it." Maddie said, rolling her eyes behind his back. "I associate you with pranks, and girls, and…"

"That sounded so British." He said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "I swear, I have the best effect on you. If I ignore the unnecessary insults directed at me, that is."

"Shouldn't you be focusing on something?" Maddie said, changing the subject as she leaned back against the wall. "You promised me we wouldn't get caught."

"And we won't if you would be quiet." Sirius said, shooting her a smirk over his shoulder. He went back to facing out from the statue, twirling his wand behind his back. Maddie immediately recognized the itch in his hands, the familiar twitch that always overtook him when he was planning on pranking somebody. He always got it when he was anticipating doing something that he knew he shouldn't have been doing. She had seen in hundreds of times, mostly when she didn't want to, and knew to take it as something that wasn't necessarily a good thing. She had lost count of all the times she had been caught doing something she shouldn't have been because of him.

"James would have been much better suited for this." Maddie said, allowing herself to slowly slide down the wall into a sitting position on the cold floor. "He's used to this sort of thing. He is better at it."

"I wanted you Maddie." Sirius said, glancing back over at her for the briefest of moments. "I already told you that."

She looked up at him, taking in the small smile on his face. She was rather grateful for the fact that she was treated to a side of Sirius that so many people rarely saw. He was not the same Sirius who womanized and bullied a good portion of the population. He was not the same Sirius who joked about everything, despite the seriousness of the situation. He was not the same around her, for some unfathomable reason, and for that she was eternally thankful.

"Who do you think will cause this big scandal this year?" Maddie asked, playing with the hem of her uniform skirt. Her mother would have killed her if she knew she was sitting on the dirty floor in her tailor made uniform, soaking up dirt and who knows else what. She knew that she second she stood up her entire backside would be covered in dust and dirt. "I bet one of the Smithleing twins will do something."

The twins, Wanda and Wendy, were world renowned for their ability to cause a scene everywhere they went. They tended to drink more than they were supposed to and talk louder than was usually deemed appropriate. It was not a proper holiday unless one of them was making a proper fool of themselves in some way or another. Maddie was surprised one of them hadn't turned up pregnant yet, given their less than desirable attitude.

"Anybody can cause a scandal," He paused, shooting her a wolfish look. "If you give them enough firewhiskey."

"Don't be crude." Maddie said, shooting him a sour look. "What would your mother think if she heard you talking like that?"

"That old bag can shove it up her arse for all I care." Sirius said, allowing a dark look to mar his features for the briefest of moments, before replacing it with a characteristic smirk. Maddie should have expected that sort of response from him. Maddie couldn't help but laugh at his choice of words. "Now, come here."He reached his arm down to heft her up into a standing position. "So, what you're going to do is so simple even your little American brain can handle it."

"What is it?" Maddie said, shooting him a derisive look, ignoring the 'American' comment.

"Just go stand out there and look pretty. It shouldn't be too hard for you." Sirius said, smoothing down her uniform shirt on her shoulders. He could have predicted the horrified look on her face. "Trust me Mads. This will all work out in the end."

With those words he gave her a small shove, forcing her out from behind the statue they had been hidden behind. She looked back at him wildly, a scowl twisting her normally stoic face. She could barely see him from behind the statue winking at her and giving her a very enthusiastic thumbs up before he slipped farther away into the shadow, leaving her standing woefully alone in the quiet hallway. She was certain she would kill him when this was all over. She looked around the deserted hallway, feeling anxious and awkward as she took in the large torches and cold decorations.

Whatever Sirius had planned couldn't end up well for her.

She felt like she had been standing there for an eternity when she heard a large group of voices echoing along down the hallway. They were laughing loudly as they moved closer and closer to her. She tried to compose herself before they reached her but she was still fairly positive she looked horrified to be caught standing alone in the dungeons that so obviously weren't home to her.

"Madeleine?" She felt her entire body freeze up when she heard that voice. "What are you doing all the way down here?"

Walden MacNair could not have looked more surprised or more satisfied to see her standing there on her own. Sirius had said nothing about involving the same Slytherin's whom her father had scolded her about talking back to. She would surely never hear the end of this when she got home. She wouldn't be surprised if she wasn't ever allowed to come back to school. Or leave her house for that matter.

"I was just…" She trailed off, cursing the fact that she had never really picked up on Rory's talent for lying under pressure. "Coming to see you. I was coming to see you."

The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.

"I find that hard to believe." He said in his clipped, light British accent.

"I," She kept wracking her brain for a way to make this seem less sketchy and suspect. "I was told to apologize." She hated the fact that her voice sounded so meek and surprised.

He smirked at her, throwing an amused look at the group of boys around him, before he took a few steps forward. "So get on with it then."

"MacNair…"

"Walden will do." She felt her entire body squirm as the boys around him laughed at his tormenting of her.

"Walden, I am very sorry for the way I spoke to you." She said in one quick breath. She felt thoroughly disgusted with herself for stooping so low to apologize to such a complete and utter ass. "It was uncalled for and disrespectful."

"And what else?" He asked, earning even more chuckles from the boys around him.

"What do you mean 'what else'?" Maddie asked, feeling her arms cross over her chest subconsciously. "I apologized."

"Come now, Madeleine…"

"Maddie."

"We both know that wasn't a very heartfelt apology."

"I don't really know what else you want me to say." She snapped. She wished, more than anything, that Sirius would hurry up and do whatever it was that he was planning on doing.

"I want you to mean it." He said taking a few more steps towards her. "Really, really mean it."

"I did MacNair." Maddie said through gritted teeth. "I wouldn't have said it if I didn't."

"Madeleine. I told you that Walden would do." She watched him with what she was sure were completely alarmed eyes as he reached into his robes, smirking over at her. His hand returned, holding onto his wand. He twirled it in his fingers, shooting her a look. "Now, why don't you try your apology again?"

She opened her mouth, fully hating Sirius Black, only to close it again. She felt her mouth fall open as she looked up at his face. MacNair's entire face, and everything about him for that matter, was slowly but surely turning a dazzling shade of crimson. It started out almost like an overenthusiastic blush, but slowly spread down his cheeks and over his clothes. The color of his tie shifted, bleeding into the white of his uniform shirt. Maddie felt her mouth fall open even more at the sight. His hair was crimson. His pants, shirt, and shoes were crimson. Everything about him was dyed the exact color that he would hate.

He looked at her face, twisting his now red eyebrows up in confusion.

"What?" He snapped angrily.

"Walden!" One of the boys around him reached out a hand towards him, shaking his shoulder violently to get his attention. "You're…" He trailed off catching sight of his own arm covered in red. They both looked down in alarm, rubbing their hands over themselves in an attempt to get the color off of them. The rest of their group pulled out their wands, desperately shouting incantations to try and remove the seemingly permanent color from their skin and clothes.

At that point Maddie had to hide her laughter from coming out in undignified snorts.

Sirius Black has his moments, but this one had to have been his most brilliant.

MacNair immediately turned around towards her, anger written all over his bright crimson face. He appeared even redder from anger as he took two massive steps towards her, brandishing his wand at her angrily.

"What did you do?" He spat, reaching his wand towards her and pressing it into her chest. She could feel it poking her painfully.

"I didn't do anything." She said, backing away from his wand, only to have him follow after her. "I don't even have my wand out."

He pushed his wand into her chest even harder, causing slight sparks to emit from it. Maddie could feel them hitting her skin, causing painful little tingles. It would have been the perfect moment for Sirius to intervene. She reached her hand down to the waistband of her skirt, discreetly, feeling around for her wand.

"Fix this." He snapped digging his wand into her skin even further. She distinctly remembered being promised that nothing bad would happen. She had been under the impression that this would somehow make her feel better. Not worse. Or in the hospital wing.

"Maddie there you are!" A voice called suddenly, drawing the attention away from her. "I've been looking for you everywhere."

Sirius Black, the stupid bastard, came striding towards her, a mischievous smirk plastered all over his face. He didn't even acknowledge the bright red Slytherin's glaring at him as he sauntered over to her. He, despite the fact that MacNair was still bearing down on her, threw his long arm over her shoulder, pulling her closer to him. She felt his hand pinch her arm slightly, causing her to jump.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, getting his less than subtle hint. "I thought you were…" She trailed off, looking up at him in alarm.

"In the library, I was waiting for you." He pinched her again, pulling her even closer. "I waited for you for ages."

"Get lost, Black." MacNair snapped, causing Sirius to look very at him for the 'first' time.

"Blimmey, you look adorable." Sirius said, letting out a bark of laughter. "That color suits you. All of you really."

MacNair let out a snarl, which Maddie wasn't even aware humans were capable of. Maddie wasn't exactly sure what Sirius' plan was to get out of the mess they were in, but she knew that she couldn't, or shouldn't, leave it up to him.

"We have to go then." She said maneuvering her way away from MacNair. "We need to finish that paper we were working on…" The feebleness of her lie was apparent to everyone. She could just imagine Sirius rolling his eyes at her less than believable words.

"Right." He pushed her forward, carefully maneuvering her past MacNair. "We wouldn't want Lily to worry about you."

"Madeleine. If you think you can just walk away…"

"The thing is princess, she can." Sirius said, shooting him a sour look. "She didn't do anything to you."

With that he pulled Maddie along behind him, ignoring the loud protests coming from the Slytherin's. He didn't even look back, choosing instead to pull her along until they were completely out of the dungeons altogether. It was only when he knew that they could talk freely that he stopped. He released her hand, moving away from her. She could see his shoulders shaking slightly for a moment before he burst out laughing in loud spurts.

"You were brilliant Mads." He said through his loud laughter. "Absolutely brilliant."

Maddie felt her mouth drop open slightly. Brilliant was not the word she would have used to describe her performance in the slightest. She had been panicky, fidgety, and above all else, a horrible liar. The prank had only worked because of Sirius' brilliance and prowess at lying. If she had been left alone to her own devices, she was quite sure that she would have ended up in the hospital wing, due to her undeniable inability to ever act when she needed to.

"Seriously Maddie." Sirius said, finally calming down his laughter. "I couldn't have done it without you."

"That's a bit of an overstatement." Maddie said, rolling her eyes.

"I wouldn't lie to you." Sirius said, reaching his hand over to her shoulder. "Now, do you feel better?"

In a way she did feel better. Seeing them slowly turning from their normal coloration into a deep shade of crimson had made her entire body feel light with happiness. She had hardly ever seen them look like fools, despite all of her subtle attempts, so seeing that had been truly refreshing. However, despite the happiness that was filling her up, she still felt depressed. She had felt undeniable upset for the past couple of weeks, resulting in an almost constant state of anger and annoyance. This prank had been meant to make her forget about the news she had received about her sister and the letter in which she had been scolded in.

It hadn't. In fact, it almost made it worse. She couldn't really explain or put into words why she felt so upset after she had been so happy. But she did.

"Sirius," Maddie said, slowly making her way in the direction of the Gryffindor common room. "I don't know why, but this didn't really help. I still feel odd. I can't explain why, because the thing MacNair wasn't actually that..."

"You're rambling."

She let out a loud breath, looking up at him as he smiled down at her.

"I'm sorry. I know I've been rather depressing to be around lately."

She felt his hand squeeze her shoulder slightly as they walked. "I still like you." He paused, squeezing her shoulder slightly harder. "You know, the first time I was set up for betrothal, I felt like this almost constantly."

"What?" Maddie asked, looking up at him in confusion. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"That's why you're still upset isn't it?" He asked, stopping to look and face her. "You're sister's betrothal?"

Maddie had not really expected those words to come out of Sirius' mouth. Normally he wasn't really one to talk about girly things with her. In their fourth year she had been found by him, crying her eyes out about the fact that she had sprouted a pimple on the day she was supposed to go to Hogsmeade with a boy in the fifth year. Instead of talking her down he had walked in the opposite direction, only to return with a confused Lily and Rory in tow.

"I suppose it is." She said slowly. "Although, I don't know why it makes me so depressed. It's not like I'm the one getting married."

"It makes me depressed to think that your sister will be off the market. She is perfect, if I'm being perfectly honest"

"Ha ha." Maddie said, shooting him a dirty look.

"Not as perfect as you, of course."

"Something tells me you've practiced that line before." Maddie shoved him playfully, ignoring the affronted look on his face.

"Who says I meant it until now?" Sirius asked, finding a huge amount of delight in the fact that Maddie immediately looked away from him, rolling her large eyes.

"Be serious."

"I'm always Sirius."

Maddie let out a frustrated sigh, moving to walk slightly in front of him. She felt his hand immediately latch onto her shoulder, pulling her back so that she was forced to look at him.

"Seriously Maddie, I wouldn't hold onto this for too long. Your sister is a Steele. She won't get married off to just some random bloke off the street. It will be someone who can at least take care of her."

"I guess. He won't love her though." She said quietly. She knew how ridiculous it was on her part to even being to imagine marrying someone for love. It never happened in her society and it wasn't likely to change with her sister.

"That won't happen to you Maddie." Sirius said looking directly into her blue eyes with his own grey ones.

Maddie nodded slowly, not believing his words at all. She walked in silence for a moment until she remembered what he had said earlier. "You were betrothed before?"

"Yea, for like a week in fifth year." He said nonchalantly. "Apparently the girl's family didn't realize how much of a git I was, according to my mother." He let out a small laugh. "She was so horrified when she met me for the first time. Her parents called it off before anyone really had time to register that it was happening."

"I was horrified when I met you." Maddie said, earning a small laugh from Sirius.

"Yes, but you weren't supposed to marry me." He said, throwing his arm over her shoulder. "Imagine being told you had to spend the rest of your life with me," He paused. "When I was a bloody fifth year. I wouldn't have even wanted to marry me."

"That's a lie and you know it. You would love to spend the rest of your life with yourself." Maddie said laughing at the look on his face.

"While I admit, I am fabulous. I was a little nasty then."

"A little?"

"Oh come off it." He pulled her along down the hallway, earning looks from the passersby. He pulled her even closer to him, if that was possible. "I am an absolute wonder to be around."

Maddie couldn't help but laugh out loud at him as he pulled her along. She could feel herself shaking against his side as she let out round after round of fresh, loud giggles. It did not take long for him to join in with her, causing her body to shake even more from his own loud laughter. They were attracting even more attention to themselves as they stumbled through the hallways, bouncing off of each other in their attempts to quiet themselves down.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, breathing a little heavy from her laughter.

"I didn't want you to get too jealous." He said, earning a swift smack from her to his arm. "Kidding Mads, I'm kidding."

She smiled up at him, feeling significantly better than she had not even ten minutes ago. It had always been a talent of Sirius', and occasionally James', to make her feel better even when she thought that it was almost impossible. There had been so many times that she thought she would surely wither up from how upset she was when they had swooped in and made her laugh for hours on end.

"See Mads, I told you you would have fun."

"If that's the word you want to use..."

* * *

When they finally managed to make it back to the common room they were greeted by a sight that wasn't exactly out of the norm. Rory was sitting on top of the couch, like she always did, and James was dancing around her, oblivious to the look of annoyance on her face. She had her arms crossed over her chest, with her lip pursed out. Her long blonde hair, while usually spilling into her face, was thrown back over her shoulder, revealing her displeasure.

"James, I said no." Rory said, digging her arms into her chest even further. "I'm not going to."

"Come on." James whined loudly, earning a few alarmed look from the first years huddled in the corner. "It's just for a day."

"I hate that stupid place James." Rory snapped. "And you know that."

"Mate, you're obviously losing." Sirius said from the doorway, drawing their attention over to them. Rory's face immediately lit up at the sight of Maddie standing squished in the doorway with Sirius. She jumped up off the couch, shooting a sour look at James in the process, before hurrying over to grab her hand.

She pulled her into a tight hug, like she always did, crushing her as she squeezed her. "Maddie, you will never believe what my parents told me."

"You're adopted?" Sirius asked, sidling into the room before plopping heavily onto the couch next to a now very disappointed James. "You're actually a monkey under a spell? You're mother isn't actually a seer?"

"I wish," Rory said with a snort. She pushed Maddie down onto the couch in between the two of them before walking in front of them all. She eyed them each momentarily before she spoke again. "My mom and dad just informed me that our trip to the Congo will last all of the break and even a little into the school year."

"The Congo?" Sirius asked loudly, looking up at Rory from his spot on the left side of the couch.

"That's hardly fair Rory." James said loudly, completely ignoring Sirius' question. "I will miss you too much."

"Oh be quiet." Maddie said, elbowing him lightly in his side. "I wish I could go with you Rory."

"It's wonderful .I am going to come back so tan. It's hot and filled with animals and no one will know about how crazy my mother is. "

"I am fairly sure they will figure that out within five minutes of meeting her, Rory." Sirius said, squirming slightly as Maddie reached around to smack him on the side of his leg.

"I wish you all could go with me..." Rory said trialing off, looking down at Maddie specifically with a sad look on her face. Maddie could see the sadness welling up in her friends blue eyes. Her eyes were so unnaturally large and owlish; it was always completely clear and transparent when she was upset. Maddie could always tell. "I really wish you could."

"We'll be fine." James said, slinging his arm over Maddie's shoulder. "I am sure we can find legal ways to entertain ourselves."

"And some not so legal ways." Sirius added in with a wicked smile.

"I'll be fine Rory." Maddie said, ignoring the two boys on either side of her. "It'll only be a couple of weeks."

They sat in silence for a moment, not really sure of what to say. It wasn't until James had had enough of the impossible silence that they managed to move on from the awkward elephant in the room of Maddie being forced to go home. He stood up from his spot so suddenly it startled everybody else, causing them all to jump.

"Let's go do something tonight." James said. "Just the four of us. Remus is doing homework, Peter is in detention. It's perfect."

"We haven't done that in forever." Sirius said, sounding thoroughly excited at the prospect. "I have to show you what Mads and I did today."

"I would rather not see the dirty details, thanks." Rory said simply, ignoring the horrified look on Maddie's face.

"Apart from that, we can't James." Maddie said, earning a scoff from the bespectacled boy in front of her. "We have a quidditch match tomorrow."

James face fell immediately when she said that. "Oh yea."

"Oh yea." Rory mimicked. "Idiot."

Maddie couldn't help but laugh at the look on James face as he regarded his best friend angrily. "There's no need to get mean Aurora."

"I am not being mean, James."

"When did Rory get so sassy?" Sirius asked, letting out loud barks of laughter.

"When did you start to use the word 'sassy'?" Maddie asked, earning even more laughs from Sirius.

"I don't know. I guess I picked it up from this weird American I'm friends with."

"Those silly Americans." James said, earning a loud snort from Rory before he backtracked and smiled falsely up at her. "I mean, those wonderfully beautiful Americans. Where would we be without them Sirius?"

Sirius paused in his constant laughter, looking over at Rory briefly before he fixed his gaze onto a snorting Maddie. She looked much happier than she had in the hallway, what with her large smile and happy tears streaming down her face. Her hair had fallen into her face in her excitement. Her uniform, he noticed with a small smile, had been fixed back into it's pristine state. It was so very Maddie-like.

Everything about her was so very Maddie-like.

"I don't know mate." Sirius said, keeping his gaze firmly planted on Maddie as she looked around at him, cheeks flushed from laughter.

"Flounder." Maddie managed to choke out through her laughs.

"Like fish." Rory added, winking roguishly at James.

"I imagine you ladies are right." James said, pulling Rory into a very tight, bone crushing embrace.

"We always are, arent we?" She managed to muffle out into his uniform shirt.

"More often than we would like to admit I'm afraid."


	8. Chapter 8

_Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that is the stuff life is made of. _

_-Benjamin Franklin_

* * *

_November 18, 1975_

It had only been a couple of minutes of quiet between the four friends when Remus had come bursting into the dorm room, holding a wrinkled up newspaper aloft in front of him. He rushed over to them, tripping slightly over one of the cushy armchairs, causing him to stubble. He righted himself, shaking his hair out of his face, before he skidded to a halt in front of his four very alarmed looking friends. He handed the paper to James, struggling to catch his rapid breathing.

"It's happened again." Remus managed to wheeze out, placing his hands on his knees.

"What?" Sirius asked, moving to stand next to Remus. He peered down at him, leaning down slightly. "You're not making much sense, mate."

James, who had been scanning the newspaper article, immediately reached out a hand to Sirius. He pawed at his arm, pulling him towards him. He shoved the paper at him, ignoring Sirius' affronted look. James moved away from him, running his hands through his messy hair.

"Bollocks." Sirius cursed, crumpling up the paper in his hands as Maddie and Rory made a move towards him to take it from him.

"What's going on?" Maddie asked, reaching around him in an attempt to grab the paper he was now holding away from her.

"Two more muggle women have been found outside of Salem."

"Please tell me you're kidding Remy?" Rory said, pausing in her attempts to grab the paper from Sirius. "Because if you are, it's so far from funn…"

"Rory, why would I joke about that?" Remus said, shooting her a withering look. He moved forward to place hand on her slightly trembling shoulder. He moved her back to her seat on the armchair before dropping heavily into one of the thick, golden armchairs opposite of it. "I was walking past some first years talking about it over a crumpled up Daily Prophet." He said wearily, dropping his head into a pair of trembling hands. "It was two women this time."

"Did it say their names?" Rory asked, fixing her glasses in a nervous fashion.

"Yes." Remus said quietly. "Belinda Frost and Hattie Timothy." He looked at the floor as if it was the most interesting thing he had ever seen.

"What happened to them?" Rory asked, sinking down onto the couch.

"I think you would prefer not to hear the details." Remus said slowly. "They make even me sick to think about."

He glanced over at Maddie, gauging her reaction to the less than spectacular news. She was looking at the floor, ignoring Sirius' hand on her shoulder, squeezing it slightly. Her eyes were clouded over and glassy, giving them the overall effect of verging on tears. Her hair had fallen into her face slightly. Looking at her, Remus couldn't help but pity her. He knew, more so than the others in the room, what it was like to feel guilty about something that you couldn't control. Everybody in the small group of people surrounding the fire knew that her family, along with Sirius' indirectly, was involved with the heinous crime against the two women. It was written in between the lines of the article, clear as day to anybody who knew the proper signs to look for.

"How did it get into the papers here?" James asked sitting himself down next to Rory once again. He threw a heavy arm over her shoulder, pulling her closer to him. "I mean, it could just have been a muggle crime with no connections to wizards." "

"There were no signs of trauma." Remus paused, thinking about how best to phrase the next sentence. "They all appeared to drop dead of heart attacks."

"I am assuming they were young." Sirius said, eyeing Maddie warily. He felt her tense up under his hand, attempting to pull away slightly.

"They were both barely twenty-three." Remus dropped his face into his hands once more, rubbing his eyes until they watered under the pressure.

The five of them sat in silence, trying to process the information that they had just been given. It was the second attack in a month, all in the same area of the world. There was no pattern between the victims, besides the fact that they were muggle, and there was no real reasoning behind the attacks besides hate. It baffled Remus. That was the only way to describe it. He had never heard of such blatant violence being committed in the open before. It had been so long since this sort of crime had been committed out in the open by wizards. Granted, he was much more aware of what was happening in the world now that he was older, but it still surprised him all the same.

"Damn it." Rory stood up so suddenly it made the rest of them jump slightly. "Damn it!" She yelled the second time, causing those not involved in the conversation to look over at her in alarm. A pair of slight look first years stood up quickly, grabbing their books in a rush, before scurrying out of the room with furtive glances at Rory. She placed a resounding kick to the side of the couch, earning even more surprised looks. "Damn it." She said this one much quieter than the other two.

James sprung up, grabbing her arm to get her to sit back down. She struggled for a moment before she finally sank into his arms, throwing her face into a chest in a very un-Rory like fashion.

"This wasn't supposed to happen." Rory said, her voice shaking.

"Rory, you can't really do anything about it." James said, fully hating the words that came out of his mouth. He stroked her hair, attempting to get her to stop shaking with what he assumed was anger.

"That's just it isn't it?" Maddie said suddenly, speaking for the first time since they had received the news. "That's not how it should be." Sirius reached his hand over, trying to get her to calm down, only to have it be slapped away. "No." She stood up, smoothing down her skirt like she always did when she was uncomfortable. "We shouldn't have to hear about six innocent people being murdered just outside of our home town." She looked over to Rory, her entire body shaking. "The attacks are getting closer to Salem. We can't ignore that. What's going to happen next? Muggles being dragged out of their homes in the middle of the night?"

"Nothing is going to happen to you. We'll make sure of that." James said, earning a very harsh, and very unexpected, glare from both Rory and Maddie. Rory stepped back from him, crossing her arms over her chest.

"That's not what I'm worried about James." Maddie snapped, causing Remus and Sirius to exchange surprised looks. It was very rare that Maddie raised her voice, and it was even rarer for her to do so when it involved her friends. "In case you haven't noticed I'm not a muggle."

James let out a sigh, stepping towards Rory and placing his hand tentatively on her shoulder. She immediately unslung it, delivering a hard elbow to his side.

"There are people dying, innocent people, and its more than likely all because of my family. Do you even realize how sick that makes me feel? My family is killing people. And you have the nerve to act as if my safety is what we should all be concerned about?"

"Maddie, I didn't mea.." James trailed off when he saw the tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm related to that filth."

With that she stood up and stalked out of the room. She didn't even bother to look back over at them as she made her way up the stairs to the dormitory and out of sight. The remaining four of them watched her until they heard the door to the girls slam shut with a resounding crack. James let out a low steady breath, eyes trained onto where Maddie had just been. Sirius made to stand up and follow her, only to be stopped by a sharp look from Rory. She indicated, with a flick of her wrist, for him to keep his seat.

"You couldn't keep your mouth shut could you?" Rory snapped, scowling heavily over at James. "You just had to keep stepping in it."

"Rorster, calm down." James tried to keep her from standing up, only to have her flick him sharply on the arm. "She is just upset."

"And don't you think she had the right to be?" Rory asked, glancing back over to the girl's dormitory. "I mean imagine how you would feel if your own flesh and blood was responsible for six murders."

"I don't have to imagine Rory." Sirius said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Or did you forget, what with your nutter of a mother and all? Some of us don't have the liberty of pushing our heads into the sand and pretending that none of this really happening. Some of us will always have to go home. Some of us will have to hear how wonderful this is for the damn cause over our Christmas turkey."

"Watch it, Black." Rory said angrily. "This is already bad enough without you making it worse."

"I am not going to do this with you, Knight." Sirius snapped.

Remus had been watching the exchange between two friends, sensing the direction it was going almost instantly. James had been sporting the same uncomfortable, and slightly angered looked, from the moment Remus had told them about the new women being murdered. Maddie had tensed up, and subsequently flared up, as soon as the conversation had turned, albeit unintentionally, towards the topic of her family and her home. Sirius had looked calm, but Remus could see that he was upset by it. Rory was perhaps the most surprising reaction. She was always much more emotional about things than Maddie was, but Remus had never expected her to react to suddenly and angrily.

He cleared his throat, sensing the ever increasing tension growing between the two friends.

They both look over at them, glares still on their faces.

"Rory, why don't you go speak with Maddie, get her to calm down a little bit." He said, ignoring the angry look on Sirius' face. "And Sirius, why don't you, me, and James go find Peter and Lily. They will hear about this eventually, I am sure Maddie and Rory could use Lily's level head."

"That's ridiculous Remus." Sirius snapped, shooting a dark look down at Rory. "Maddie doesn't need…"

"I'm her best friend." Rory spat.

"And what am I?" Sirius spat, flexing his hands up in anger.

"Alright, alright." James said, stepping in between them. "I think everybody just needs to calm down."

"I understand this is hard to hear for you Rory, but you should go help Maddie." Remus said, giving her a slight shove in the direction of the stairs to the girl's dormitory. "We will see you two tomorrow at the match."

"Shit!" Sirius said causing all of them to look over at him in alarm.

"What?" Rory asked dryly, her annoyance showing all over her face.

"My parents are coming to the match." He said, earning a small pat on the back from James. "I bet they know all about what happened in Salem."

"Maybe you can ask them," Rory paused, a derisive smirk slipping onto her face. "Considering they're not nutters or anything."

She gave him a small scowl before turning on her heel and making her way up to where Maddie was. Her air flared out behind her, slapping Sirius resoundingly on the face. They heard her humming all the way up the stairs, something she always did when she was angry, before the door slammed shut with a loud bang. The three remaining boys were silent for a moment before James sent a small smack to the backside of Sirius' head.

"Ow!" Sirius reached his hand up to rub the back of his head. "What was that for?"

"Why do you always have to be such a prat?" James asked.

"That's rich coming from you." Sirius muttered darkly, earning a small eye roll from Remus. "What the bloody hell was that with Maddie? 'You'll be safe Maddie…'" Sirius trailed off when James punched his shoulder with a loud smack.

"Don't act like that isn't one of the only things you think about when it gets this close to the holidays." James bit back.

"You think your parents will talk about the murders with you and Maddie?" Remus asked, interrupting their inevitable fight with a subtle hint that they should move their conversation up to their dorm room. "I mean, I am assuming they are going to want to check up on her. Her parents and them are really close aren't they?"

"Unfortunately. Her mum and my mum were best friends in school. I didn't even know my mother was capable of that sort of thing until I met Persephone Steele." Sirius said, making his way heavily up the stairs. "They will want to share ever little detail with us, just to see us squirm, the sick bastards."

"Right nasty bastards is right." James said, shooting one more look over at the girl's dormitory before moving towards the stairs to the boy's dormitory.

* * *

Maddie did not sleep a single bit the night before the quidditch match against Slytherin. She had not expected to as soon as she found out about the two muggle women. Every single time they found out about someone being hurt, she found it almost impossible to go to sleep afterwards. It made her stomach sick and her throat dry just to think about it. Rory hadn't even gone to sleep, which was odd, considering her ability to compartmentalize. They had talked briefly in hushed and broken voices before opting instead to go with a resounding and uncomfortable silence that carried on for the remainder of the impossibly long and miserable night.

Lily had come running in, eyes slightly bloodshot and immediately started rattling off apologies and condolences. But even she too had quieted up when she had seen the looks on their faces. Maddie didn't quite understand why she had apologized. She hadn't lost anyone. She had thought it had seemed more appropriate to condole Lily, considering she was more connected to the muggles than Maddie, or Rory for that matter, were.

The morning of the game was one of the worst Maddie had had in a very long time. Not only was she exhausted, but to add onto to it she was being forced to go have breakfast with Sirius and his family. She had thought she might be able to avoid it, considering the Black's had not seen their sons for a while, but Sirius had said that his family, and hers, had insisted. She knew better than to show up wearing her quidditch uniform, making her long morning even longer. It had taken her an extra thirty minutes in the shower and an additional fifteen minutes to decide what to do with her hair and makeup. She would never hear the end of it from her mother if she showed up looking like death, even though she felt like it.

Rory and Lily gave her sympathetic looks as she walked out of the room, choosing to avoid making her angry by not saying anything.

She made her way down the stairs, careful to keep her dress smoothed down, as slow as she possibly could. She hated meals with pureblood families. She had been to so many of them in her life, yet they never got any easier or less uncomfortable. Her newly polished shoes felt tight around her feet, making them sweat slightly. Her dress felt as if it was pushing against her muscles, suffocating her to the point where she thought she was going to pass out.

Sirius was waiting for her, lounging on one of the many cushy couches, a glare etched onto his tan face. He looked up when he heard her footsteps coming heavily down the stairs. He, despite looking exhausted, still looked impossibly handsome, making Maddie feel even more like a troll as she moved towards him. His hair fell in just the right way that hers never seemed capable of. He skin was clear and clean, while hers looked like she hadn't washed it in days, what with its waxy look and feel.

"Ready to get this over with?" He asked, standing up. Maddie couldn't help but stare at what he had chosen to wear. A muggle t-shirt, adorned with some music group she was unfamiliar with, and a pair of ratty old blue jeans, covered in stains from years of being worn out to quidditch practice. His shoes had holes in them, revealing a pair of brightly colored mix-matched socks.

"What on earth are you wearing?" Maddie asked, looking down at her own nice dress and flats. She smoothed it subconsciously.

"Why should I try and impress them?" Sirius asked with a snort. "Although, I have to admit, you look kind of wonderful." He gave her a wolfish smirk, daring to lean forward and plant a very loud and very wet kiss on her cheek, before pulling her out of the common room and down the hallway.

"How long do you think they will keep us?" Maddie asked, struggling to stifle back a yawn as they made their way down the changing staircases. "I mean we do have a match to get ready for."

"I'll make sure it isn't too long." Sirius said with a thoughtful look on his face. "Who knows? Maybe I'll just say you have a horrible case of the runs and we have to go get that taken care of before the match."

"That's absolutely vile. I surprised you would resort to potty jokes Sirius. It's so unlike you." Maddie said, feeling entirely too tired to come up with anything more clever. "I am sure your mother would love to hear that. Perhaps you could test it out in her?"

"I would love to see the old bags face if it did."

They both arrived in the entrance hall much sooner than either of them would have liked. They were greeted by the sight of two impossibly tall figures glaring around the room at all of the people who were milling about, talking excitedly about the upcoming quidditch match. The students, or at least the smart ones, gave the two intimidating figures a wide berth, choosing to take a longer route to their destination rather than having to travel even remotely close to them.

Walburga, Sirius' mother, stood much taller than most women. She had the distinctive Black family tan skin and grey eyes. Her hair was pulled back into an alarmingly tight bun, giving her face a tight, pulled back sort of look that Maddie had seen about a thousand times on the strictest of pureblood women. Her clothes were all black, like they always were, and flowed about her in a way that Maddie couldn't help but liken to bat wings. Despite the fact that she and Sirius shared similar features, the way she carried herself was so starkly different it was almost laughable. In every way that Sirius was playful and caring, Walburga was serious and cruel. The two of them could not have been more different from each other and it was abundantly clear to every single person who had encountered the two of them together.

Orion Black was, if possible, farther from Sirius than his unsavory wife. He was taller than his wife, although he was still shorter than Sirius, and was ridiculously well-muscled for a man his age. He stood with his thick arms cross over his chest, glaring down at the children who made the mistake of making eye contact with him. He, like his wife, wore all black. Maddie imagined it was a uniform of sorts. She hadn't ever seen the two of them without the color covering them. His hair was gelled back slightly from his tan face, highlighting his aristocratic cheekbones and alarmingly smooth skin. The only mark on his smooth face was a set of crow's feet around his eyes and a long scar that marred his strong jaw. Maddie would have considered him handsome if it weren't for the fact that he was nothing short of a homicidal maniac.

"Look at them." Sirius said pushing Maddie forward with him. She had stopped at the top of the stairs as soon as she had seen them, refusing to move forward towards them any further. "It's like they can't function like normal people."

Maddie didn't miss the utter revulsion and hatred in his voice as he stared down at his parents. "Let's just get this over with, Sirius." Maddie said, plastering a fake smile onto her face. "It will be over before we know it."

"Just keep telling yourself that, Mads."

Neither of his parents seemed to perk up at their presence. In fact it was quite the opposite. They both turned to look at them with horribly hidden glares etched onto their faces. Walburga immediately turned up her nose to Maddie, sizing her up like she always did when they encountered each other. It was a tradition of sorts for the women to size each other up whenever they came in contact with each other. They judged their hair, clothes, makeup, weight, and most often, the man that they had managed to snag. It was not something that dwindled with age. The eight year old girls did it and the eighty year old women did it.

Walburga didn't even crack a smile as she moved over to Maddie, pulling her into a very awkward and very forced hug. Even though Walburga and Maddie's mother, Persephone, were friends, Walburga had always disliked Maddie immensely. It could have been for hundreds of reasons, but Maddie had long ago figured out the true cause of the dislike. Maddie was too much like Sirius and too close to Sirius for Walburga to feasibly like her. She hated Sirius and she extended those feelings to Maddie. It appalled her to think that Maddie actually had more influence over her son than she did, resulting in a never ending hatred and disdain that Maddie couldn't seem to stave.

"You have gained weight, Madeleine." She said simply, eyeing her up and down after the tense embrace. "You should get that under control before its get out of hand."

It was actually the opposite, but Maddie wasn't about to backtalk Walburga. Maddie couldn't help but glance down at her body at Walburga's comment. She had to bite her tongue from saying something nasty, remembering that this exchange would undoubtedly be reported back to her mother and father.

"Thank you for pointing that out Mrs. Black." Maddie said, forcing a tight smile onto her face. "I would be embarrassed to arrive at the society events carrying a few extra pounds."

Walburga let out one of her characteristic glares as Sirius scoffed audibly.

"Where is Regulus?" Sirius asked, shooting his mother a glare. "I want to get this over as soon as possible. This wonderful reunion was his idea after all."

"Mind your tone boy." His father spat, grasping Sirius roughly by the collar of his shirt and squeezing the back of his neck threateningly. Sirius winced before he could stop himself at the pressure Orion was applying to his skin.

Maddie looked back and forth between the two of them for the briefest of moments before she opened her mouth to end the horribly tense staring match that was happening between the father and son. "Mr. Black, how is your brother doing? Last I heard he was falling ill from a dreadful affliction. Is he recovering?"

Orion gave Sirius one more murderous look before releasing him roughly, turning his intense glare onto Maddie. Maddie could feel Sirius' surprised look washing over her as she looked up at his father. She plastered on a fake serene smile, attempting to look genuinely concerned and interested.

She never intervened. It wasn't something she did. Ever.

"He is recovering for the time being." Orion said, turning his intense gaze onto Maddie. "I am surprised your parents didn't tell you that."

"They mentioned his illness." Maddie said simply. "Although they never said he was doing better. I hope you will send him my good wishes." Maddie almost felt the knot in her stomach fighting its way up at the fake and formal words she was having to use.

"We will be sure to pass the word on Madeleine." Walburga said slowly, once again sizing her up and down.

"Please tell me the party started without me?"

The four of them turned around to see Regulus Black strolling towards them, a smirk on his face. He was only a few inches shorter than Sirius, but much skinnier. He was lean, but it was hidden beneath his Slytherin quidditch robes. He had the same straight nose as Sirius and their father, and the same stormy grey eyes. It was a little unnerving how much he looked like Sirius. However, having known him as long as Maddie had, she knew that was where the similarities stopped on the surface. He was just as cruel as his parents and found a sort of sick joy at the pain and discomfort of others. He had been so much like Sirius when they were younger, resulting in a long forgotten friendship between Maddie and him. She had actually considered him to be a friend at one point, something she couldn't help but laugh at when she looked back on it.

"Regulus, how have you been?" His mother immediately moved forward to pull him into a hug. It had always baffled Maddie that Walburga was so willing to show emotion to her second son, when it seemed that more often than not, she didn't possess any emotion but hate and anger. She planted kisses on his skin, making both Maddie and Sirius wince "We have heard such wonderful things about you and this school year." Maddie and Sirius didn't miss the dark look that she threw in Sirius' direction. "We hear your grades are fantastic."

"I have been well mother." Regulus said. He shook hands with his father before turning his attention onto the awkward pair beside him. "Maddie, you look as confused and lost as ever. Still beautiful, however. Nice to see my brother's poor influence hasn't affected you in that way. It would be such a shame." He sent her a small smirk when he saw her face twist up in anger and disgust.

"It has been too long Regulus." Maddie said through tight lips. "I trust you are ready for today's match."

"I am ready to annihilate you if that's what you mean." Regulus responded, ignoring the murderous glare he was getting from Sirius. He moved forward, grabbing one of Maddie's hands to plant a soft kiss on it, only to have Sirius immediately swat his hand away when his parents weren't looking. "I look forward to it however. You were always such a good opponent."

"Slytherin has made you creepier, Reg." Sirius said simply, keeping his hand firmly clamped around Maddie's. She felt him subtly wiping off where his brother had kissed it with his thumb.

"Shall we eat breakfast?" Walburga said, doing a horrible job of hiding her amusement at the discomfort of the two Gryffindor's in front of her.

"If we have to." Sirius said, shooting another angry look around him before following his family into the Great Hall.

* * *

Abigail Steele met Garrison Franzket on the fourteenth of May. She was out walking, trying to get away from her mother, when she saw him through the only gap in the wall. It had been a pastime of hers, once she was back from Hogwarts, to spend as much time as possible outside of her house. It was made particularly worse when Maddie wasn't home. Maddie was the only one who didn't scare her. Maddie was the only one who didn't make Abigail want to run away and never look back.

He was by far the most handsome individual she had ever seen in her entire life. He stood tall, taller than her already tall frame, and lean with curly, messy blonde hair, and the brightest green eyes. His hair was caught her first. It had shone out in the bright sunshine like spun gold. He was perfect and she didn't even know who he was. She didn't even register the fact that he was on the other side of the wall because he was a muggle. She was mesmerized by him and she wasn't quite sure why.

She had watched him from behind the safety of the wall for what felt like months. She had felt odd watching him, never daring to approach him. She had felt like she was a stalker, but she couldn't bring herself to care. He was so wonderful she hardly noticed anything else. She saw him laughing with all of his friends, throwing some weird brown ball back and forth. He seemed to almost glow in the summer sun to her. She had thought, briefly, that he had to have some sort of Veela in him, considering how wonderfully beautiful looking he was.

When she saw him, she knew that she had to know him. She had to know what his voice sounded like. She had to know what his hands felt like to hold.

She had to know him.

She had to.

It was an odd feeling, deep down in her gut, which she couldn't seem to shake. It consumed her thoughts when she was supposed to sleeping. It filled her up when she was supposed to be eating. It followed her everywhere she went, sitting on her shoulder, constantly reminding her of his face in the summer sun.

When she had first crossed over the wall, she was terrified he wouldn't want to talk to her. She had thought he would turn her away with a laugh of ridicule before returning back to his odd muggle game. As soon as he had seen her however, those fears seemed like nothing. She had decided to wear her favorite yellow sundress and sandals. Maddie had always said it made her look pretty. She had fluffed her hair, done her makeup, made herself seem beautiful.

She still wasn't sure why, even up until this day, she walked right up to him and introduced herself. In any other situation she would have burst into tears at the thought. At the time, she had never even been alone with a boy, let alone asked him out. She had done it however, despite herself. She had asked him in the smallest voice she could muster. She hadn't wanted to die. To turn right back around and never cross that damn wall ever again.

But she did ask him. And he said yes.

He had watched her the entire she had approached him, curiosity written all over his handsome face. He smiled at her, despite the fact that she had appeared from, seemingly, out of nowhere. He shook her hand when she introduced herself; he had smiled at her horrible awkwardness.

His hands had been as soft as she had imagined them. He had been even more wonderful in person.

He had done everything that no other man, related or not, had ever done for her in her entire life.

He had listened to her.

Looking back on it, Abigail should have known that loving him was inevitable. He was perfect in every conceivable way. And he was hers. He was a muggle but that had never mattered to her. She had fallen for him the first time she saw him and she still loved him six years later. She still loved him even though she was set to marry someone else in a little over two months. She still loved him despite the fact that he knew nothing about her magical side.

She still loved him even though she was never meant to in the first place.


	9. Chapter 9

_Sometimes being a friend means mastering the art of timing. There is a time for silence. A time to let go and allow people to hurl themselves into their own destiny. And a time to prepare to pick up the pieces when it's all over. _

_-Octavia Butler_

* * *

_November 18, 1975 11:30 am_

Walburga, Orion, and Regulus Black had treated Maddie to one of the most unpleasant and uncomfortable breakfasts she had had in her recent memory. They had insisted, with almost alarmingly large smiles, that the five of them sit at the end of the Slytherin table surrounded on all sides by the worst people in the entire school. Maddie had felt the stares of all those who passed on her back, ogling her and Sirius as they tried to muddle their way through the miserable experience, making it, if possible, worse.

The conversations were the same as always; gossip about other less than desirable families, gossip about the financial situation of the Black's so called friends, and gossip about those who were planning on joining up with the cause. It was their favorite thing to talk about, especially in front of Sirius, as it gave them yet another opportunity to talk about their youngest, and obviously most favored, son.

Maddie had sat, much to her chagrin, shoved in between a very annoyed Sirius and a very annoying Regulus. She had counted down the minutes, the seconds, until she would be able to slip away from them, pulling Sirius along behind her.

It had been a supremely awful meal that she wasn't eager to repeat in the slightest.

Walburga, the old hag, had droned on and on about how proud she was of what was happening in and around Magical Salem. Apparently it was all according to plan. Whatever the hell that meant, Maddie wasn't sure. She had even gone so far as to say she wouldn't have been surprised if it started to become a regular activity in the coming days, weeks, and months. Maddie had tried her best to ignore her words of praise for the torture and murder of the muggle women, but she found, after a solid hour and a half of listening, that she couldn't fight the horrendous knot that welled up in her stomach and chest. It felt hot and uncomfortable as it sat on her chest and stomach, making her feel slightly sick as she listened to all the awful that was spilling out of Walburga's mouth.

The discomfort of the conversation had sat heavily on her chest for the duration of the conversation and continued to sit there for the remainder of the day, making her feel as if it was hard to breathe at times. To them talk so callously about people who had just been brutalized and murdered made her so undeniably sick. She considered it to be a rather remarkable character trait of hers that it still surprised her to hear people talk like that, considering she had heard it so many times before. She would have thought she would be used to it by now. She was rather proud that she wasn't. She had been appalled by the topic of the conversation for a good portion of the meal, making the interactions she shared with the Black's awkward and tense. Maddie had made it her personal goal, fairly early on in the meal, to forget every single word that Sirius' parent's said to her as soon as they uttered them.

It felt like a hundred, soul sucking, heart stopping years, before Sirius had finally managed to come up with a viable excuse to get the two of them to leave. His parents had glared at them as they had left, like they were offering them personal insult. They glared at Sirius like he had just told them he was planning on dropping out of school and becoming a muggle politician.

Sirius had made it abundantly and inescapably clear throughout the entire conversation that he hated his parents with a burning intensity and he didn't exactly care if they returned the feelings. Maddie had been treated to an hour of the Black family dynamic, and once she was out of it, she found that it was alarmingly worse than that of her own family. They were arrogant, rude, and insulting to everything about Sirius and anything that had to do with him. They tore down his friends and belittled them until they were nothing, holding back none of their biting insults despite the fact that they were surrounded by students.

She had no idea, despite all of Sirius' stories, just how much his family hated him. It was made abundantly clear after that meal that they thought Sirius wasn't worthy to wipe their shoes with his mouth. The hatred sat like a bad taste in her mouth as they walked away.

"Your mother is an absolute nightmare." Maddie said in a harsh whisper as soon as the two of them were out of earshot of the two older Black's.

They had been, regrettably, forced to sit with Sirius' family for far longer than either of them had anticipated. They were running horribly late, due to whole debacle, causing both of them to have to jog down to the quidditch pit before James noticed their forced prolonged absence.

"She was being nice, Mads." Sirius said with a loud snort. He glanced over at her, shooting her a playful smirk. He stopped laughing immediately when he saw the alarmed look she was giving him. "It's really not that big of a deal. I got used to it a long time ago."

Maddie thought for a prolonged moment, pausing in their swift jog to quickly pull off her hindering flats before she turned to look at Sirius. "It does give me an even better to kick Regulus' sorry ass though doesn't it?"

Sirius let out a small laugh, shoving her shoulder slightly with his hand. "He was being such a little ponce wasn't he?" He steered them in the direction of the quidditch pitch, pulling her along being him as he started to run faster. "Although, he is always like that, so it wasn't really all that surprising."

"Do you think they were being serious when they were talking about what is about to happen in Salem?" Maddie asked, stopping so suddenly, Sirius stumbled slightly as she wrenched them both to a stop. "I mean, you think it is really going to get as bad as they say?"

Sirius looked at her for a moment, taking in her worried expression. Her surprisingly dark eyebrows were knitted together as she thought over the conversation that they had just been forced to sit through. Her hair was whipping around her face, tangling and catching on her ears and eyelashes. Her dress flew up slightly, revealing more of the pale skin of her upper thigh. He could see goose bumps that weren't entirely from the chilly air peppering her skin. Her hair, which had become curlier in the air, obscured her face slightly. He took a step closer to her, running his hands through his own tousled and mussed up hair, before he spoke in a cautious and guarded voice.

"I don't think you really have to ask that Mads." Sirius said heavily, crossing his arms over his chest tightly in an attempt to keep them warm. It had been delightful to see his mother's disdainful look directed at his shirt, but now that he was outside in the cold, it had seemed like a colossally bad idea to wear without a jacket.

"I figured as much."

She looked at the ground, clenching up her pale fists at her sides. She pushed her dress against her body with them, feeling the scratchy woolen fabric scrape along her skin. She focused, with hawk like attention, on the fading green of the grass, before she shook her head. She looked up, looking at Sirius for a moment before she turned on her heel and stalked off in the direction of the quidditch pitch, not even bothering to see if Sirius was keeping up with her speedy strides.

Maddie pushed her way past the numerous students, all decked out in either crimson red or bottle green, ignoring the loud shouts and laughs emitting from them. She received some hard pats on the back and shoulders, all of which she returned with an involuntary glare. The well-wishes she received from those in her house fell on deaf ears as she pushed her way through the crowd. She knew that Sirius was walking directly behind her, keeping his steely grey eyes trained on her back.

Sirius had fully expected her to become quiet and withdrawn after the breakfast with his family. He had known her long enough to know, vividly so, how she tended to become quiet, painfully quiet, when she was upset about something. Of all of his friends, she was the one that was affected the most by the bad news they received. He had tried to get her to talk to him numerous times after previous incidences happened in her home town, and more often than not, in her own home. She never really would though. He could often get her to say superficial, factual things, but never really the true brunt of what she was actually feeling. He often had to interpret what was happening behind her large blue eyes, even though she never really wanted him to. He could see it wearing on her as the time passed in her life, and he was quite sure that she would mull over this particular incident for weeks before she finally found it in herself to move past it.

Sirius attempted to keep up with her speedy pace, watching as she pushed pass the throngs of people. He had almost lost her four separate times by the time the two of them skidded into the locker room. They both panted heavily for a moment from having to push through the crowds and having to fight against the wind. Maddie had not said anything else to Sirius after the last comment she made before hurrying off without him. She had kept her head down, occasionally reaching up a pale hand up to smooth her hair out against the wind, ignoring everything and everybody that she passed by. Sirius had kept his distance out of respect for the fact that if he pushed her too hard, she was liable to go sprinting off in another direction, not to turn back up for hours.

Sirius was positive James would kill him if he ran off their seeker mere minutes before the match started.

James jumped up as soon as he saw the two of them come rushing in, a look of harried anger on his face.

"Where on earth have you two been?" James asked, shooing the rest of the team off to do more stretching on the other side of the room with a wave of his gloved hand. They were all eyeing the two newcomers, taking in their disheveled hair and sour expressions with raised eyebrows and furtive glances. "The match starts in fifteen minutes."

"We've been with my parents." Sirius said, moving over to where his team robes were hanging. He pulled his t-shirt over his head, throwing it lazily onto the floor in a heap. "It was bloody torture, mate. You should have heard Regulus drone on and on about all of his achievements."

James glanced over his shoulder, searching the tent for any sign of Maddie. She had slipped into the girl's side, unbeknownst to them, leaving the two of them alone. "How did Maddie enjoy herself?"

"My mum felt the need to find every little aspect that was slightly off about Maddie and turn it into a mortal character flaw." He looked around the room for a moment, checking to make sure that they weren't being listened in on, before he stepped closer to James, throwing his uniform shirt over his bare shoulder. "She called her fat about fifteen times."

"Maddie weighs the same as a soaking wet pygmy puff." James said with a snort at the thought of Maddie being considered fat.

"Right?"

"Anything else?" James asked, tightening his arm guards.

"Not anything I can say here, mate." Sirius said, shrugging his shirt over his shoulder.

"Did they talk about the muggle women?" James asked, keeping his gaze on the direction Maddie had slipped off in.

Sirius glanced over his shoulder before pulling off his denim pants, making sure his boxers didn't go with them. "Briefly, but I don't think they wanted to give too much away surrounded by a bunch of students."

"When will you two ever learn to stop gossiping?" Maddie had apparently finished changing at some point during their conversation. They both looked at her with surprised expressions on their faces, gauging the emotions on her face. She had pulled her hair back into a messy ponytail, throwing her pale face into sharp focus. She made her way over to them, bare feet padding against the cold floor.

"We weren't gossiping." James said, moving over to pick up his racing broom. "Sirius was just telling me the facts."

"Besides, gossiping is not something two dashing, handsome young men do." Sirius added, pulling on his uniform pants. He couldn't help but notice the slight blush on Maddie's face when she noticed he wasn't fully dressed. He kept his mouth shut, opting to forgo the snarky comment for the time being.

"I'm sure." Maddie said, reaching into her bag to pull out her arm guards and gloves.

She walked over to the two of them before plopping down on the bench in front of James. She felt tired, despite not doing anything physical all day. She felt the weight of the Black's words on her mind and chest, making her feel as if she had run for six hours solid.

She couldn't deny, as much as she would like to, that it scared her to think about the situation in her home town getting worse. It was hard to fathom things getting worse, considering how bad they already were. It was hard to put into words and thoughts just exactly how she was feeling. She couldn't call it disgust, because she felt like that was too mild of a word to describe just how horrified and repulsed she was by what was happening in the society around her.

She pretended, even to Rory, and more often herself, that it didn't bother her as much as it did. It was often easier to put her head in the sand and pretend that it wasn't really happening. But you could only do that for so long, and Maddie had about worn herself out with all of the pretending. She had worn herself out and she was positive those around her could see just how tired she was. She had put on a good show, she thought, making it easier to lie to her friends.

The entire situation made her feel tired all the way down to her core and into her bones.

"Are you two ready?" Maddie asked, forcing herself out of her own reverie. She pulled on a pair of crimson socks that Alice had knitted for her back in second year over her freezing feet. They had been a gift before her first quidditch match and she had worn them ever since to all of her matches. She pulled on her insulated leather boots over them, completely ignoring the looks the two boys were giving her.

"Do you even have to ask Mads?" Sirius asked, placing a strong hand on her shoulder.

"Let me go get the rest of the team." James said, shooting a wary look over at Sirius before rushing back to get the four remaining members, leaving the other two awkwardly alone.

"Mads, are you…"

"I don't want to talk about it." Maddie interrupted knowing exactly what he wanted to talk about. She bent down to pick up her broom from its spot nestled beneath one of the numerous benches.

"You never want to talk about it." Sirius said sourly, watching as she struggled to pick her broom out from beneath the piles of clothes she had shoved under there when she had come back in from changing. "You could at least talk to me Maddie."

"No." She said, emerging from beneath the bench, holding her broom out in front of her. She turned away from him, moving towards the stop where the team huddled up to listen to James before all of the matches. She smoothed down her white pants, grimacing slightly as she brushed her hands over her backside. She nervously tucked and smoothed at her clothes before she finally tensed up completely when Sirius snapped at her loudly.

"Bloody hell, Madeleine." Sirius snapped, causing her to look around at him sharply. "You can't just pretend like none of this is happening. I know you are being eaten up inside by all of this. Why can't you just talk to me like you used to?"

"Things change Sirius." Maddie finally looked over at him. " Things obviously change. You were at that breakfast. You heard them talking like it was nothing. I don't want to talk about it, and I'm never going to want to talk about it. It makes me feel sick, tired, and scared, and I don't want to feel that way when I don't have to. Leave it alone. Talking about it isn't going to change what's coming. Talking about it isn't going to make it easier to go home this break. Go find Rory if you desire a conversation that much, because you're sure as hell not going to get it from me." Maddie gave him one more sharp look before she hoisted her broom up on her shoulder. "And if you call me Madeleine one more time I swear on Merlin's beard I will make you regret it."

She turned on her heel and walked out of the tent, presumably in the direction of where the Gryffindor team would fly out from, leaving Sirius standing there, watching the flap she had just stalked out of with his mouth handing open slightly.

In all of the years of friendship that he had shared with Maddie Steele he had never heard her once threaten any living creature, let alone himself. He felt his face squirm up in confusion at the outburst. It was so un-Maddie like.

Sirius didn't say anything to Maddie when he, in addition to James and the rest of the team, joined her on the platform that led out to the quidditch pitch. She was facing away from him, twirling a piece of her reddish blonde hair around her finger, watching as the Slytherin team flew around the pitch to the cheers of the crowd clad in green and silver. He could see that her small shoulders were tensed up, which was to expected, as well as her boot clad feet tapping the ground nervously.

In general, she looked about as twitchy and nervous as a drug addict.

James moved forward to place a hand on the shoulder, leaning down to whisper something in her ear that Sirius couldn't quite catch before he moved back into his position at the front of the line. The other two chasers on the team, Barry Binson and Misty West, moved past her, clapping her loudly on the shoulder as they went. She looked up at them, going so far as to give them a small, almost unnoticeable, smile, before she moved back to the end of the line behind the keeper, Sunny Ramsey.

She didn't even look at him as she passed by him.

He thought about going to talk to her, only to be interrupted by James telling them to mount their brooms from the front of the line.

Sirius glanced over at her once more before mounting his broom and skyrocketing out of the platform after the rest of the team, reveling in the cheers coming from the crimson student section. He spared Maddie one last glance before moving into his starting position as indicated by the referee, Madame Spindler.

Maddie had not expected Sirius to let her off the hook so easily. After she had stormed out of the tent, rather immaturely if she was being honest, she had expected him to follow after her, badgering her to talk about how she was feeling. His lack of action was surprising and rather welcomed. She didn't want him to pick apart her brain and get her to explain her feelings. He would wear her down until she finally spilled everything, which she would fully regret, leaving her feeling worse than she would have if she hadn't shared.

She eyed him wearily out of the corner of her eye as she took her place in the circle above the ground.

His shaggy black hair blew around him in the violent wind, causing him to look even more wild and exotic than he normally did. She could see the familiar smile plastered to his face as he swung his beaters bat around, warming up his lean arm muscles.

He didn't even look like he had just been subjected to his parents, asshole brother, or her emotional temper tantrum.

He looked excited and almost at peace as he listened to Madame Spindler give out the usual rules.

He looked like nothing had happened, and that completely boggled Maddie.

She shook her head, trying to get Sirius out of her mind as she focused her attention back onto the match that was about to happen. She tried to get his face out of her head, willing herself to focus on the snitch instead. James would kill her if she didn't catch the snitch. Literally kill her. Part of her, a rather dominant part if she was being completely honest, didn't really care about catching the snitch. All she cared about was beating Regulus, and by transfer the Black family as a whole. She wanted them to feel the pain of defeat, especially when they were in attendance, just once.

They never felt it in real life. They always won. Everybody in her society always won and she was sick of them.

She wanted them to known what it was like to lose, and she was hell-bent on being the one to make them know that feeling.

The match progressed in a flurry of movement as soon as Madame Spindler released all of the game balls into the air. Maddie forgot all about Sirius, and the fight, if it could even be called that, and everything else around her.

She watched the little golden snitch for a moment before she dashed off after it.

She felt the wind whipping against her hair as she maneuvered her broom after the snitch, ignoring the almost immediate watering of her eyes. The wind was some of the worst she had ever experienced in all of her quidditch matches in her schooling years. It bit her face and felt like a thousand tiny needles pricking her skin. It always felt like that when she was flying. For some reason, however, this seemed worse. It felt more intense than just the wind across her face. Perhaps it was the blistering cold that went along with it. Or perhaps it was the fact that Maddie was in one of the worst moods she had been in in her recent and immediate memory.

She squinted her eyes, trying to see the snitch against the sunlight. Maddie made a mental note to wear sunglasses the next time she was playing. Of course, she always made that mental note to herself, before forgetting it the next time like clockwork.

She followed the snitch for a solid five minutes before she lost sight of it. It dipped behind one of the many wooden parapets, forcing her to halt in the middle of her path.

She scanned the pitch frantically, taking in every little detail she could. Her thighs gripped her broom tighter in an attempt to keep her righted in the howling wind. The snitch was always hard to see, but for some reason, that day it felt like it was almost impossible to see. The shouts and jeers filled her ears as she moved her broom around the pitch. She could hear the difference between the positive and negative voices, but other than that nothing really stood out to her.

That is, except for Regulus Black. He was on the opposite side of the pitch as her, bobbing up and down in his spot. His hair was blowing in the wind, just like his brothers, making her think for split second that she was looking at Sirius instead of Regulus. It was an unfortunate coincidence that Regulus was the seeker on Slytherin quidditch team.

As she watched him, looking entirely too smug with himself, she wished nothing more than for him to get hit with a very well-aimed bludger. Maybe then he would wipe the smirk off his face.

Maddie blinked rapidly, feeling slightly ashamed at the direction her thoughts had gone. It didn't do her, or her team for that matter, any good to be imaging bodily harm to Regulus Black. She shook her head, turning her attention away from the younger Black and back to finding the golden snitch.

She scanned around the pitch for what felt like hours, before she finally caught sight of it again.

It was hovering just behind the Slytherin seeker, bouncing up and down in twitchy motions. The sun was bouncing off it, highlighting it fabulously, making it so easy for her to see it was almost laughable.

She immediately pushed her racing broom forward, lifting herself up slightly off the seat as she raced across the pitch.

The wind whipped her face and arms even more, causing her loose ponytail to come undone completely, sending her hair spilling all around her face, obstructing her view slightly. She heard the crowd getting louder and louder the faster and faster she sped herself across the pitch, adding to her own pumping adrenaline.

The keeper looked up, alarm written all over his face at seeing her coming barreling at him full speed. He dove out of the way just in time, shouting cusses that were lost on the howling wind.

Maddie had caught the snitch hundreds of times in practice and games before, but this time it felt different. When her freezing hand wrapped around the cold metal surface, her entire being felt like it was relaxing. The snitch squirmed in her hand for a moment before it went still. The amount of cheering from the Gryffindor section of the stands was almost deafening as Maddie tipped her broom towards the ground. She barely landed before she was engulfed in a massive hug. She stumbled slightly before she felt the person release their hold on her slightly.

"That was brilliant Mads." Sirius said loudly into her ear, pulling her into his chest, cutting off her air supply. "Bloody brilliant."

"It felt bloody brilliant." Maddie said, feeling her face crack into a smile against the material of his uniform shirt. She looked up at him for a moment, taking in his wind burned face before she threw herself at him again. "I'm sorry for being a little crazy before the match. The whole thin…"

"You were?" Sirius asked, trailing his hands down her back as he pulled her into an even tighter hug as he interrupted what he was sure was going to be a rather long rant. "I didn't notice."

"Shut up." She said into his chest, smiling when she felt him a place his chin on top of her head. She felt his chest rumble as he let out a loud laugh. "So, you arent mad at me?"

"I could never be mad at you." Sirius said simply, not bothering to set her down despite the prolonged embrace.

"The feeling is mutual, I think." She leaned her head back to look at him, taking in his handsome face as he smiled down at her.

"I'm sorry about calling you Madeleine."

"See what happens if you do it again." Maddie said, feeling herself smile even more when his laugh rumbled her own chest from the magnitude.

"Maddie, I love you." James said loudly from behind Sirius, causing Maddie to step back from him. James pushed him aside before scooping her up, spinning her around on the spot. "You should have seen old Reggie's face when you caught it before him. He looked like someone put laxatives in his morning tea."

"I can imagine." Maddie said, smirking into his shoulder as he swung her around. She let out another laugh at the enthusiasm of the embrace.

"You deserve a drink Mads." Sirius said, clapping a hand onto her back. "And a bloody strong one."

Maddie couldn't help but agree with him completely after the day they had all had.


	10. Chapter 10

_The two most powerful warriors are patience and time. _

_-Leo Tolstoy_

* * *

_November 18, 1975 8:00 pm_

The amount of time that the Gryffindor quidditch team, in particular Maddie and Sirius, had to celebrate with each other was uncomfortably and impossibly small and short. It felt to Maddie as if the second she had been swept up into James' arms, she was being pulled back and passed onto another gleefully happy person. She felt like she was being passed from one friend to another, trying desperately to ignore the loud yelling from the students who had stormed the pitch in unbridled excitement. James had released her, mostly due to the look on Sirius' face, into the arms of a very excited Rory, before disappearing into the large, crimson clad crowd completely. He pulled Sirius with him, leaving Maddie to look around for them for a moment, before she was swallowed up by a massive three-way hug between her, Rory, and Lily.

"Why are you such a badass?" Rory breathed loudly into her ear, squeezing her around her middle so tightly Maddie had to struggle to breathe. "That was beyond sick."

Maddie knew, from numerous late nights, that Rory slipped into her more American way of speaking and acting when it was just the two of them or when she was uncontrollably excited. It had often, more often than Maddie had to heart to admit, kept the two of them at arm's length from the other students at the school. It seemed that they found it hard to keep up with them when they started babbling on and on in their fast American slang.

"Oh Maddie, you should have heard the disappointment coming from the Slytherins." Lily said excitedly, finally stepping back and releasing her grip on Maddie. "They looked like somebody had just messed with their inheritances."

Maddie looked over at Lily, taking in her excitement flushed face. Lily shook her bright red hair over her shoulder, glancing back and forth at the excited crowd around them. The students were cheering loudly, clapping all of the Gryffindor team members on the back roughly, and throwing haphazard hugs as they passed them by. Rory was covered head to toe in her usual match day attire, causing her to stand out from the rest of the more subtlety dressed crowd. She was completely covered in crimson and gold, including her wild hair being dyed and her eyes being pure gold. While Rory never liked to play quidditch, she was one of the most fanatic fans about the sport that Maddie had ever encountered in her life.

"I think you could use a drink after that kind of a win." Rory said, a wild smirk appearing on her face underneath all of the dye. She completely ignored the disapproving look on Lily's face as she mimicked throwing back a shot. "I have some Firewhiskey stashed under my bed. Just in case, you know."

"Rory!" Lily snapped, placing a hand on Rory's shoulder. Both of the blondes looked over at her with scrunched up faces.

"Lighten up Lily Evans." Rory said, giving the actual red head a light push.

"Sirius said the same thing before he left." Maddie murmured, looking around her to find an escape route from the massive teeming crowd. "He said I needed a strong drink after everything that's been happening."

Rory let out a small laugh, looking for a pathway to get them out of the middle of the crowd. "Of course he did." She grabbed a hold of each of their hands, pulling slightly in one direction. "He probably just wants to get you drunk. Maybe he thinks he'll get a good time out of you."

"Rory!"

"Get the stick out of your ass, Evans." Rory said, elbowing Lily lightly. "Besides, you know it's true."

"No it's not." Maddie said simply, spying a small hole for the three of them to escape through from the crowd. "We've all known him long enough to know that he doesn't go to the bathroom where he eats."

"What?" Lily asked, face scrunching up in confusion.

"You know, he doesn't mix business with pleasure." Maddie said simply, hoping to make her meaning more clear.

"That was the most repulsive euphemism for sex I've ever heard." Lily spat out, using her elbows to help the three of them get out of the celebrating crowd. "I mean honestly, it's not like Sirius is doing any 'eating' with Maddie. The analogy is kind of pointless and vulgar."

Maddie felt her mouth drop open completely at Lily's words. She wasn't sure the redhead had realized exactly what she had just said, which made the situation that much more awkward and, at least in Rory's opinion, hilariously, riotously funny. "Did you just…"

"I don't think she gets it Madpad." Rory said, letting out loud snorts of laughter at the words that had just come out of Lily's mouth.

"Oh, I didn…" Lily's entire face blushed scarlet as her two friends eyed her like she was insane.

"Well I'm sure he would like to." Rory said, ignoring the horrified looks from Maddie and the now horribly embarrassed looks from Lily. "The way he looks at you and all, it's like you're the greatest thing he's ever seen."

"Kitty Kakowski is the greatest thing Sirius Black has ever seen." Maddie said with a laugh, pulling even further towards the edge of the pitch.

When the three of them finally managed to fight their way through the crowd, they were immediately accosted a very excited looking Remus and Peter. Remus stepped forward and pulled Maddie into a tight hug, lifting her slightly off the ground due to the difference in height. Maddie was more than a little surprised that Remus, and even Peter, had showed up to the match at all. He had never really taken much of an interest in sports, choosing instead to focus his intelligence and attention on reading books and playing intellectual games. He and Lily had always been well-suited and similar in that sense.

Peter shifted awkwardly on his feet in front of Maddie, Lily, and Rory, looking up at Maddie as soon as Remus had released her onto her feet once again. Maddie looked down at him, taking in the uncomfortable look on his face and in his body language. She let out a sigh, glancing around briefly, before she pulled him into a tight, briefly awkward hug.

"You'll soil his tightie-whities if you keep hugging him, Maddie." Rory whispered into her ear quickly, causing Maddie to immediately release Peter and turn around to give a well-aimed slap to Rory's arm. Rory stepped back out of the aim of Maddie's arm, shooting her a sly wink before she turned her attention onto Remus. "Why are you here? I thought you hated organized sports."

"I do Rory. But I don't hate Maddie, James, and Sirius now do I?" Remus said, giving her a snarky smile.

"Here, Here." Rory saluted him, shuffling on her feet to wrap a short arm around his middle. "Have you seen James, by the way?"

Maddie, as well as everyone else in the small group, did not miss the derisive scoff from Lily when Rory asked that. All of them had been there from the very beginning of Lily's disdain of James, so it came as no surprise to them when Lily made noises of protest whenever James Potter was brought up in conversation.

"Locker room I suspect." Remus said. "I think I saw him and Sirius slink off that direction just after they congratulated you, Maddie."

Rory smiled, nodding to him quickly as she grabbed a hold of Maddie's arm. She began to pull her off in the direction of the locker room.

"If you two are going to go hang out with Potter, I think I'll just say goodbye now." Lily muttered darkly, rolling her eyes at the enthusiasm on Rory's face. "Would you like to join me in the Great Hall for dinner, boys?"

Remus nodded, reaching over to give Maddie one more tight hug. "You did stellar Maddie, honestly." He gave her a smile before allowing himself to be pulled away by Lily, forcing Peter to toddle after them like he always did. Maddie watched them leave, feeling slightly better now that all of her friends had congratulated her on the victory. Even if Lily was a little sour about James in the process, it still made her insides tingle with happiness. Maddie watched them leave until she felt the familiar presence of Rory's small hand on her arm, drawing her attention back over to the crimson clad Gryffindor.

"Come on, Maddie. Let's go find Jamesy-poo."

"You're going to make Miss Evans murderous if you keep calling him that." Maddie said with a loud laugh, allowing herself to be pulled by Rory towards the direction of the locker room. The laugh felt weird coming out of her throat. It had felt like she had been so upset for so long, she had almost forgotten what it truly felt like. "She may start to think that you have feelings for our dashing Mr. Potter."

"Try not to make me gag, Maddiewaddie." Rory said, using her elbow to push a particularly large first year out of their way.

"James is appealing in his own way." Maddie said, smirking at the look on Rory's face. "He's got a little something for everyone I think. Even you."

"You could date him if you think he's so fantastic." Rory said simply, shooting Maddie an odd look.

Rory fell silent, which was odd for her, choosing instead to stick her tongue out at Maddie in a rather childish way. Maddie could recall all the times that she and Rory had had that very same conversation. It always ended with Rory denying any sort of romantic feelings towards James vehemently. Maddie had always gotten the sense, however, that Rory was harboring some unsaid feelings. Maddie didn't know how deep those feelings were, but she had known Rory long enough to know when she cared about someone as more than a friend and when she didn't.

Rory shot Maddie one more sour look before shaking her head and offering her a smile, albeit rather forced. "I am sure Sirius is looking for you. We should go before these students start mobbing."

They hurried into the locker room, not speaking to each other. Maddie almost felt like she had crossed a line when it came to making fun of Rory about James. Almost. As soon as she thought more in depth about it, she immediately felt differently. After all, Rory had just implied the same thing with Sirius. Of course, Rory had been implying that ever since Maddie and Sirius had become friends way back earlier on in their lives. It had been a topic of conversation that had followed Maddie and Sirius around everywhere they went. It seemed that the students of Hogwarts just couldn't fathom that they could be friends and purely that. She had been told thousands of times that her and Sirius were surely sleeping together, despite her desperate attempts to squash the rumors. She had been told hundreds of times that she and Sirius just had to be involved in some sort of torrid affair, despite what she told them otherwise. She had ultimately decided to make jokes, rather than get angry and upset by the words. She supposed she should consider herself flattered that people deemed her pretty enough to be with Sirius.

If she was being honest, she couldn't help but consider him so handsome it almost hurt to look at him sometimes.

As soon as Maddie and Rory were in the locker room, they were both immediately set upon by their two extremely sweaty and giddy friends. Maddie didn't mind nearly as much as Rory, considering she was just as sweaty as they were, resulting in her and Sirius sharing a much more enthusiastic embrace than their counterparts. He lifted her off the ground, swaying her back and forth for a moment before he set her down again, keeping his sticky arms wrapped around her shoulders.

"What took you two so long?" James asked, pulling his Gryffindor team shirt over his head, before throwing it to the ground in a small, sweaty pile. "You didn't get attacked by some of you numerous admirers did you?"

"Only the desperate ones." Rory said with a small wink.

"Glad to see you got out alive." Sirius said, following James' motions by pulling off his own shirt.

Maddie looked up at him, smiling as she took in the smirk on his face as he started pulling at his outer layers of clothes. His dark hair, clumpy from sweat, fell in front of his grey eyes. His uniform was rumpled and sticking to his body, adding to his overall disheveled appearance. All in all he looked so like himself despite his parents visit; it made her insides feel warm with comfort. She had often marveled at his ability to jump back from the emotional and mental torment his parents insisted on inflicting upon him. She couldn't stop her eyes from wondering down to his bare stomach as he stretched, feeling her face heat up at the thought that she was ogling her best firend in a way that was enitrely unfriendly.

She shook her head, chastizing herself for thinking like all of the other females in the school. Sirius Black was Sirius Black. She wasn't about to become a member of his mob of followers.

"You need a bath." Maddie said, reaching her hand up to move his hair out of his face, before pulling it back, seeming to realize what she was about to do.

She felt both James' and Rory's eyes on the pair of them, forcing her to step back even further from Sirius, fully sporting a blush so scarlet she was surprised there was blood left anywhere in her body.

"Care to join me?" Sirius asked, letting out a wolfish smile at the less than impressed look on her face.

"I'm sure Kitty would love to." Maddie said simply, trying to deflect his attention away from the wild blush that was on her face and the huge smiles that James and Rory were fixing them with.

"Ah, but Kitty isn't you now is she?"

"No. I suppose she isn't."

He reached out a hand, ignoring the dirt that was caked under his fingernails, and placed it on the top of her head. "Now how about that drink Miss Mads?"

"Make it a double." Maddie said, causing all of them rest of them in the tent to laugh out loud.

* * *

The common room was almost unrecognizable by the time the four of them arrived after showering and changing into more suitable clothes. Rory had waited patiently in the locker room, playing with the fringe on her skirt, as the three players attempted to make themselves decent looking for those around them. James and Sirius had emerged long before Maddie, shaking their wet hair out of their faces, before plopping down on the bench next to Rory to wait for Maddie to finish. Maddie had taken her sweet time, which they had all come to expect, before walking out slowly, pulling her sopping blonde hair up into a messy ponytail.

By the time they dragged themselves up into the common room, the victory celebration was in full swing.

The older students had done a fabulous job of kicking out the younger students, leaving only the fifth years and up shouting and dancing with each other. Some were already passed on the various soft surfaces, others were drinking more than what would be considered healthy.

Rory immediately joined in the celebration, grabbing a large shot of Firewhiskey from a passing student. She chugged back the whole thing in one fell swoop, clearing her throat loudly at the strength of the burning drink.

Maddie watched her for a moment, smiling despite herself at her friend's enthusiastic response to the celebration.

She let out a loud laugh when she saw Rory jump up onto a couch, stealing yet another drink from a passerby. She wiped some of the paint off of her face, smearing it onto the face of one of the students already passed out on the couch. Maddie couldn't stop herself from snorting when she saw Rory draw a makeshift mustache on a poor boys face with some of her paint, finishing it with a curly flourish.

They had all learned long ago that Rory and alcohol never meant anything good.

"Your drink, Mads."

Maddie immediately stepped back in surprise from the drink that was currently being shoved under her nose. She followed the line of the arm, before settling on the smiling face of Sirius Black. He moved in front of her, pulling his arm back slightly, still offering her the drink with a large smile.

"Thank you, boo boo." Maddie said with a smirk, grabbing onto the drink enthusiastically.

"Is that my new name?" Sirius asked, pulling her towards an empty spot on one of the many couches. "Because I think I like it."

"Don't be weird." Maddie said, sipping her drink like it was water.

"I'm not being weird, you're being weird."

Maddie sank back into the couching, nursing her drink as she glared at Sirius out of the corner of her eyes. He was smiling widely at anyone who passed by them, nodding at some as a greeting. He thanked everyone who congratulated him with a signature smile. He winked at the girls, making some of them descend into drunken fits of giggles and blushes. He looked as if he owned the entire common room from his spot on the couch. He seemed so in his element, it made Maddie feel slightly odd sitting next to him. She felt like her discomfort was out of place next to his easy and controlled demeanor.

They sat in silence for a solid hour, watching as the students around them danced and interacted with each other. Sirius kept his arm draped lazily over the back of the couch, his fingers dancing along the top of Maddie's neck in slow, rhythmic motions. They snaked further down her back briefly, before coming to rest on top of her shoulder blade, massaging it slightly.

"How are you feeling?" He asked in her hair after an hour of comfortable silence between the two of them. He pulled Maddie's attention away from her drink. She felt his arms drawing her closer to him.

Maddie thought for a moment, before turning her head to whisper in his ear in order to be heard over the loud ruckus coming from the common room.

"I feel so good." She breathed out into his ear. "I loved beating Slytherin. It felt..." She trailed off, trying to find the words to describe her elation at beating the opposing house's team.

She felt him shift slightly so that he could face her. "You were awesome. I can only imagine the look on my mother's face."

"You didn't talk to her after?"

"Are you kidding me?" Sirius asked with a loud snort. "Why would I choose to spend more time with her than necessary?"

"I would have figured you would want to shove it in Regulus' face." She said simply, taking a large swig from her intense drink.

"That will be your job at Christmas." Sirius said simply, placing a loud sloppy kiss on her cheek.

Maddie immediately froze at the contact. She felt herself blush so intensely at the feeling of his warm lips dancing on her cheek. They were much softer than she had imagined they would be. Not that she had imagined it very often. He had always joked and prodded her with his sexual comments and references, but never had he actually done anything about it until he had kissed her cheek earlier in the morning. It had alarmed her, to say the least. It had made her insides feel odd. It had made her feel weird, but not necessarily a bad weird.

She dared a glance over at him, dropping her drink slightly in her nervousness. Her hands were shaking, which was embarrassing, as she looked up at his handsome face.

His dark hair had fallen in his face, covering his grey eyes from her view slightly. He was eyeing her oddly, taking in her face that was so close to his own. His tan skin was flushed slightly from the heat of the room, making his features stand out more to her. She could see his dark eyebrows scrunching together as he took in her face, almost as if he was thinking hard about something unknown to her.

She thought her heart was going to stop when he reached the hand that wasn't rubbing her back up to her face. His fingers ran along her cheek, ghosting along the line of her bone.

"What…"

Maddie thought she was going to die when she saw his face moving closer towards her own. His hand trailed down from her cheek, pausing next to her mouth as he ran his large thumb over the line of her upper lip. She felt the roughness of the callouses on his fingers catching on her lips. She felt his other hand dancing down length of her back, pausing when it reached the top of the waistband of her workout pants.

"Sirius?"

Her voice came out as nothing more than a pathetic squeak.

"Maddie, you were so…"

She thought she was literally going to drop dead of a heart attack when he attempted to pull her body closer towards him. She felt his hand flexing behind her back.

"Is this the moment?"

Maddie immediately leaned back from Sirius completely, bringing her drink up to her mouth in an attempt to hide the horribly huge blush that was covering her entire face. She felt Sirius' hand leave her back, leaving behind an odd sort of chilliness that alarmed her more than she would have liked to admit. Whatever moment would have happened, as much as it alarmed Maddie so completely and thoroughly, was ruined by James and Rory springing up on them from seemingly out of nowhere.

"I think we ruined it James." Rory said, sliding into a spot on the other side of Sirius in a sloppy, booze covered heap.

"You're snockered Rory." Sirius said sharply, sitting up straighter in his seat with a very annoyed look on his face.

"And I'm so happy about it!"

Maddie had to fight to keep from smacking Rory. She downed the last of her drink, feeling relieved when she felt it's affects creeping into the edges of her mind. Her hands were shaking slightly as she thought back to what had almost transpired between her and Sirius. She found, as weird as the whole thing was, that she was mad at Rory and James for interrupting. She was curious, maddeningly so, about what exactly had just happened.

She was positive she wouldn't be able to explain it even if she was sober.

She wasn't sure if she could ever explain something like that. Not with another hundred years time could she explain why he had done what he had almost done.

* * *

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	11. Chapter 11

_Only the guy who isn't rowing has time to rock the boat. _

_-Jean-Paul Sartre_

* * *

_December 19, 1975_

Maddie did her absolute best to avoid making any semblance of eye-contact with Sirius in the weeks leading up to leaving for Christmas Break. She had tried to pretend like nothing had happened for a couple of days, resulting in a fair amount of painfully awkward meals, before she had given up on it entirely. She hated the way her insides burned with embarrassment whenever she made eye contact with him. She hated the way her entire face would heat up whenever she saw him attempting to smirk at her like nothing had happened. She hated the way James and Rory would wink at them whenever they were together.

Maddie just gave up on being around him altogether.

She didn't like to imagine or think that the reason she was so embarrassed was because she was upset that she never found out what would have happened.

All of the sixth year Gryffindors kept to themselves for the most part leading up to the break. Lily and Remus, the little bookworms that they were, spent most of their time in the library, pouring over books upon books, preparing for their end of semester exams. Maddie did not see much of them, which wasn't surprising, resulting in her spending almost all of her time with Rory and Alice. Sirius had had the good sense, after seeing Maddie run away from him numerous times, to keep his distance. He took James with him, which disappointed Rory to no end.

The high that Maddie had felt after being the Slytherin team had quickly dissipated, leaving her feeling even more depressed and morose about having to go home for the holiday season.

"I just don't understand what the big deal is?" Alice asked, pulling her straight brown hair up into a loose pony-tail. "I would have thought you would want to snog the brains out of Sirius."

Rory let out a loud snort, shooting Maddie a very amused look, before returning back to her reading.

"Why are we having this conversation again?" Maddie looked up from her Daily Prophet reluctantly, fixing Alice with a very stern and exasperated look. She felt her face heating up once again as her mind flashed back to how Sirius' lips had felt on her cheek, how his hand had felt splayed across her back.

She shook her head, reprimanding herself once again.

She shouldn't have been thinking those sorts of thoughts about her best friend. She had always considered herself to be above the Sirius Black fan club. She had never been swayed by his easy looks and carefree attitude. He had never charmed her, even when he tried. She shouldn't have been observing how his hair changed as the day went on. She shouldn't have been observing how much more pleasant his skin looked when it was slightly flushed. Maddie hated the thoughts that flooded her mind. She knew they wouldn't end up being beneficial. She knew that it was impossible that Sirius even felt a single thing for her. They were best friends. He was her best friend.

He was her best friend.

Nothing more.

Alice's easy smile faltered for a moment as she took in the look on Maddie's face. She ran her hands though her hair in an uncomfortable fashion before she finally managed to think of a plausible excuse to wipe the less than impressed look off of Maddie's face. She shot a glance over at Rory, hoping that she would help her, only to be met with a poorly disguised look of amusement and pity. Alice turned back to Maddie, feeling the awkwardness of the train compartment washing over her like waves.

"Erm…"

Maddie let out a loud sigh, sinking into the cushy train seat she sat in heavily as her attention was fully returned to the two girls opposite of her in the compartment. "I'm sorry for snapping, Alice. I'm just so…" She paused, running her pale hands over her face in frustration. "I don't know."

"It's okay, Maddie." Alice let out a relived puff of air.

"You could still come with me to the Congo." Rory said, looking up from her magazine with a small smirk. She was sporting her favorite pair of non-prescription glass and had her wand tucked unceremoniously behind her ear. "Maybe you would finally get a tan."

"That's sweet Rory."

"I am the sweetest." Rory said simply, shooting Maddie a huge wink from the top of her magazine. "Where is Frankenstein?" Rory asked, changing the subject away from Maddie.

"What?" Alice asked, relaxing visibly when she saw Maddie smile slightly, indicating that she wasn't truly upset by the remarks she had made about snogging Sirius. "Do you mean Frank?" Alice asked, dark, smooth eyebrows twisting up in confusion.

"Who else would I mean?" Rory finally put down her magazine, turning to face the other two.

"I never understand what you are saying half of the time."

"Pity. I am so entertaining." Rory said, rubbing her hands along the length of her bright purple jeans. Maddie glanced at her hands for a moment before she shook her head, a small smile appearing on her face. Those pants were a sure sign that Rory Knight thought herself to be on vacation.

"Are you going to spend the holidays with the Longbottoms?" Maddie asked, glancing out of the window at the snow covered country side. The train slipped through the nondescript land, making it hard to tell just exactly how far away from London they were. She could see the remnants of trees and shrubs sticking out from underneath the snow and ice, making odd shapes appear in the scenery. Some looked like peculiar bodies, making Maddie's face scrunch up involuntarily.

"That sounds riveting. Tea with the Longbottoms, I think I'd die. I hear Frank's mom is a total loony." Rory said simply, reaching her arm down to her threadbare back on the floor. She rummaged around for a moment before she finally managed to find the bag of candy she was looking for. She didn't even bother to chew the chocolate candies as she shoveled them in her mouth, messy chocolate beginning to cover the sides of her mouth as she went.

"Be nice, Rory." Maddie reprimanded simply. "At least Alice has a boyfriend."

"Ouch." Rory popped another large chocolate into her mouth. "Besides, who needs a boyfriend when you have chocolate?"

"I do not think any truer words have ever been spoken." Maddie said, reaching over to the bag in Rory's lap. She snatched one of the chocolates before Rory could stop her, shoving it into her mouth with enthusiasm.

"You could have a boyfriend." Rory said, ducking when Maddie chucked her magazine at her head in one quick motion.

"Frank's with James, who is with Sirius. He decided it would be best to spend his train ride with them, rather than…" Alice paused, seemingly trying to decide the best way to phrase her sentence. "Upsetting the balance." Alice finished, eyeing the two girls eating the chocolate with vigor. "And I happen to think Frank's family is delightful and rather charming. His mother has her moments of oddness, but other than that, she is a wonderful woman."

"Wonderful or not, I don't think I could handle that many finger sandwiches." Rory said simply, finally managing to pry herself away from her love-affair with her chocolate. She tossed the plastic bag of candies back into her purse before sitting up fully in her seat. "Way too normal."

"I think normal would be nice." Maddie said before she had even realized she had spoken. She hadn't even realized she was paying attention when she spoke. Both girls looked over at her, faces immediately twisting up in uncomfortable sympathy. "I don't know. It just seems so nice, for once."

"I don't know. I never pictured myself being normal. I always imagined settling down in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by nothing but a hoard of cats and piles and piles of ill-fitting pants."

"Aiming high, I see." Alice said with a small, tinkling sounding laugh.

"The highest." Rory stood up from her spot, stretching out her muscles and popping her joints before she moved towards the door. "I'm going to the loo; any of you ladies care to escort me there? I am afraid I might fall in."

"I hope you drown." Maddie said simply, using her foot to push Rory in the behind.

"You'll be crying at my funeral, Mads."

"Of happiness."

"This is why you're my main bitch, Maddie." Rory said shooting her a wink.

Maddie shot her a dry look before shoving her even more roughly out of the door. She heard Rory laughing loudly as she made her way down the train hallway until it finally petered out towards the end. Alive laughed lightly next to her, keeping her gaze on the door before she turned to look at Maddie, an observational look in her expression filled brown eyes. She had finally managed to get her hair up and out of her face, revealing a large amount of pale freckles on her fairy like face. Maddie had always been slightly jealous of how warm and effortless Alice's looks were. Maddie had tried to copy it, only to be left looking even more standoffish than normal with her pale skin and harsh eyes.

The compartment was silent for a moment before Alice cleared her throat lightly, a warm smiling playing on her face.

"I'll write to you this break." Alice said, running a small hand through her bangs. "I think Frank's mum is planning on hosting a Boxing Day party. Maybe you can come?"

The comfort and invitingness that was on Alice's face made Maddie instantly feel even worse about snapping at her earlier on in the train ride. "I would love to Alice…"

Alice's face immediately lit up with excitement at her words. "But, I have to spend time with my family."

Alice's face fell for a moment, before she recovered with a slight nod of her head. "Of course. I am sure we will see each other at some point. I overheard Sirius talking about stealing you at some point to go to the Potter's for New Years. Frank and I will be there."

Maddie didn't have the heart to tell her that she wasn't even sure if she would be able to look at Sirius, let alone spend the entire evening with him. She couldn't explain why she was so weirded out about the whole thing. She felt odd whenever she saw Sirius, even though logically he hadn't actually done anything. She knew she was reading far too much into it, but that didn't stop her from feeling nervous and odd at the sight of her supposed best friend.

Alice saw right through the discomfort on Maddie's face. Maddie had found, after spending so many hours with her friends that they were all much more observant that she would have liked to admit. Alice looked at her simply, a small knowing smile finding its way to her face before she addressed the blonde in a soft, compassion filled voice.

"I am sure whatever the problem is between you two, it will be solved before you know it. You two care about each other too much to let something stupid like this get between you."

* * *

"I don't know what the hell her problem is."

James watched, with horribly disguised amusement, as Sirius paced back and forth in the small private compartment the four Marauders found themselves in. He glanced over at Remus, seeing the sandy blonde shake his head in annoyance, before he turned his full gaze upon their annoyed friend. Sirius was running his hands through his already horribly messy hair, smoothing his clothes, and clenching and unclenching his fist in pure pent-up annoyance.

"I mean, she hasn't talked to me in a bloody month." Sirius snapped, throwing himself into the seat next to Peter in a huff. He crossed his arms over his chest, sinking down into his seat. "A bloody month. She's acting like I murdered her favorite childhood pet."

"Didn't you?" James asked, barely able to hide his amusement as his friend's discomfort.

"Shut it, Prongs." Sirius shot him a dark look.

"Have you ever stopped to think, and correct me if I am being outrageous, that she is upset with you for an entirely justified reason?" Remus asked lazily from his spot next to James and Frank.

"Maybe it was the fact that you tried to snog her in full view of the entire house?" James added in playfully, earning a hard kick to his shin from a very angry looking Sirius. He ignored the look on his face and continued with his good natured ribbing. "I mean, what was that? I there something you wish to tell us, Padfoot?"

Sirius shifted in his seat uncomfortably, folding his arms across his muscular chest. He did not make eye contact with the rest of his friends as he looked at the passing country side from his spot next to the window. He was not in the mood to have this particular conversation. He was in even less the mood to have this conversation with a bunch of emotionally detached men who couldn't maintain a stable relationship, with the exception of Frank, if their life depended on it. He couldn't even maintain a stable relationship out of the bedroom if he was being perfectly honest with himself. He wasn't ashamed to admit he missed spending time with Maddie. He missed the humor that so many people rarely saw. He missed the sound of her easy laughter bouncing around in his head hours after he had last heard it. He missed her. She had been avoiding him ever since the incident in the common room and he was honestly sick of it.

"I don't know what you're talking about, mate." Sirius said simply, avoiding James' knowing gaze.

"That sounded a lot like denial, wouldn't you gents say?"

"I'd say so." Remus said, despite the dark glare Sirius shot at him.

"I'm confused." Peter spoke up suddenly, drawing all of their attention over to him.

"For the love of…"

"Sirius is having woman troubles. He can't seem to admit that he mucked it up with his best friend by trying to mack on her in front of the entire Gryffindor house and then not finishing the deed." James supplied simply.

"Really helpful, Prongsie."

"I do my best." James said with a large smile. "But honestly, you could just tell her how you feel."

"Wait. You feel something?" Peter asked cluelessly, looking back and forth between all of them. "For who?"

"Yes." James said, cutting off Sirius as he opened his mouth to speak. "And for Maddie, you idiotic sod."

"No." Sirius fired back quickly, shaking his head vehemently. "She's my best friend."

"Alice is my best friend." Frank said simply, ignoring the looks of disgust on his friends faces.

"That's disgustingly adorable, Franken-weenie."

All five boys looked up suddenly at the sound of the new voice in the compartment, looks of panic on their faces at the thought that they might have been overheard. Rory smirked at all of them for a moment, sidling into the compartment, before she shoved herself into a seat between Sirius and Peter. She shifted further into the seat, throwing her legs over Peter's leg in an attempt to get comfortable before she turned her large, owl-like eyes on the rest of the people in the compartment.

"Gossiping like a bunch of girls?" Rory asked, poking Sirius sharply in his side. "Should I go get my gal-pals? I am sure Maddie would love to sit in on this one."

"No." Sirius should have just kept his mouth shut. All of the members of the compartment looked over at him, eyebrows raised. He shirked back into his spot, face slightly flushed in a very un-Sirius-like fashion. "I mean, you don't have to disturb her. I am sure she is busy mentally preparing herself for her family reunion."

The compartment was silent for a moment before Rory let out snort of laughter. "Right. Because that's the reason why you don't want Maddie here."

"I think she's the one who doesn't want to see me." Sirius bit back.

"That was very bitter and petty sounding, Black."

"Shove off, Knight."

"Alright, before you two start killing each other, maybe you can tell us what's wrong with Maddie." James said, cutting off Rory's response before it could leave her mouth. "Besides the usual moodiness, I mean."

Rory fell silent for a moment, her face thoughtful. She pulled off her glasses, rubbing her eyes briefly for a moment, before she turned to look at Sirius in full. His face was contorted in anticipation as he waited for her to answer the question that had been swarming around them for the last month.

"Honestly, I just think she is embarrassed." Rory said, shrugging her shoulders.

"That's it?" James asked incredulously. "I thought girls were supposed to be complicated."

"What does she have to be embarrassed about?" Peter asked, mousy eyebrows scrunched up in confusion. The compartment was silent for a moment, everyone staring at Peter like he had just grown a second set of eyes.

"And you're positive he's one of your friends?" Rory asked, shooting Peter a dark look. She threw her long blonde hair over her shoulder, seeming to preparing herself for a rather long spiel. She even took off her oversized glasses, dropping them lazily into James' hands before she stood up into the middle of the compartment, turning her hardened gaze upon both Peter and Sirius. Peter blushed heavily under her gaze, before he finally turned to avoid making eye contact with her. "It's rather simple. Maddie is embarrassed. She is a girl, isn't she? I shouldn't have to explain this to you. I mean, come on Sirius, you're her best friend. How would you feel if she tried to snog you and then just acted like it didn't happen? She tells you things that she doesn't even tell me. Just go talk to her. This whole thing is bloody stupid."

Sirius let out a loud sound of annoyance. "You act like I haven't tried to talk to her. As soon as I realized something was up with her, I tried to get her to talk to me. All she would do is blush and stutter before scurrying away from me."

"Hmm, that's odd. I wonder why she would be blushing?" Rory asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes at Sirius.

"Look mate, I know I'm not the best to be giving lady advice, considering Evans won't even look at me, but Maddie isn't just a girl. She's your best friend, besides me of course, and you two are each other has for the entirety of the holiday season." James supplied simply, crossing his arms over his chest like his words had just ended the matter.

"I can go get her if you want…" Rory trailed off, eyes lighting up with mirth at the horrified look on Sirius' face.

"No!" He stood up immediately, pushing Rory into his vacated seat with a light shove. "I'll go talk to her. I don't need you sorry sods peeping in."

He moved towards the compartment door, throwing a stern look at all of his friends before he slipped out, sliding the door shut behind him. Students were laughing and leaning out of their individual compartments as he made his way through the hallways. Some of them shot him appreciative looks as he passed by, some of them shot him smiles. Others, mostly Slytherins, glared at him so thoroughly he thought they might try and hit him. He shook his head at the ridiculous look on their faces, choosing to give them sly smirks as he moved towards the compartment that he knew Maddie and Alice were occupying. They had occupied the same compartment for all of their six years of schooling. It had been easier, considering Lily Evans hate of James, for them to have their own compartment. It had always bothered Rory and Maddie, resulting in the two of them slipping out to come visit the Marauders whenever Lily was on patrol as a Prefect.

He heard the tinkling laughter of Alice mixed with the deeper, throatier laughter coming from Maddie before he came upon their compartment.

Both of them looked up from their laughter, wiping their eyes and attempting to steady their breathing before they saw who was looking at them with curiosity form the door.

Alice immediately sobered up, shooting an odd look at Maddie, before she stood up to excuse herself from the now impossibly awkward space. The remaining two watched her until she was gone, leaving Sirius and Maddie left in a stifling, uncomfortable silence.

He looked at the door, avoiding making eye contact with her, until he heard Maddie clear her throat lightly, forcing him to turn his gaze on her completely.

She was leaning back against the window of the train, running her hands nervously along the fabric of her far too formal looking cream colored dress. She was tapping her tights clad feet against the ground lightly, making soft thumps reverberate through the small compartment. Her hair was perfectly curled and half pulled back, only a few curls dancing in front of her face as she looked up at him. She looked like she always did whenever she was about to go back home.

He moved towards the seat opposite of her, fixing her with a very cautious look.

"You haven't talked to me in a month." Sirius said after a palpable silence.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly, pulling her feet up underneath her. She truly was. She hated that she had let herself get caught up in her own head. He probably thought nothing of what had happened. It was stupid and childish, she decided, for her to be thinking so much into it. It had been an awkward month between the two of them for no reason other than her own made up embarrassment.

"Are you mad at me?" Sirius asked simply. He was quite tired of the awkwardness between them and he was determined to end it right then and there.

Maddie let out a small snort, shaking her head vigorously. "No. I don't know. You didn't really do anything. I'm just being weird."

"That's it? That's the only explanation I get for you being bonkers the last month?"

"I'm always acting a bit bonkers…" Maddie stood up, moving towards him to take a seat next to Sirius. "I am honestly sorry, Sirius. I don't know why."

She reached a tentative hand out to his shoulder, squeezing it softly in an attempt to rectify her awkward behavior over the past month. She felt him tense up for a moment before letting out a small laugh. He threw his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into his side haphazardly. Her face pushed into the soft material of his causal shirt, rubbing her cheeks slightly until they colored red. She felt his hands rubbing slight circles in her shoulder for a moment before he leaned back from her.

"I convinced my mum to let you come over after Boxing Day."

"Even though I wasn't talking to you?" Maddie asked, fixing him with a confused look from beside him.

"I knew you would come around, Mads." Sirius said simply, shrugging his t-shirt covered shoulders. He was wearing a long sleeve muggle band shirt and a pair of very beat up jeans. His feet were clad in a pair of very over worn sneakers, making Maddie smile slightly as she looked at his casual attire. He could not have been more of a contrast to her, in her pristine dress and heels. She glanced down at her muted blue tights, wishing more than anything that she could manage to dress as low key. Just looking at the dark heels waiting for her on the floor made her feet ache and hurt.

"When is your family coming?"

"I think my mum wants to come visit your mum a bit early before the rest of the guests arrive." Sirius said, the thought of his mother having friends made his stomach squirm in discomfort.

He thought she was too much of a hag to have friends.

Maddie let out a loud sigh. She was dreading the thought of the upcoming weeks more than she had in the past years. She did not want to go home when she knew that the haunting memory and reminder of the deaths of the muggles would be waiting for her. She just knew her family would be talking about it with their sick friends. She just knew that her family would be preparing for Abigail's marriage, as much as they all hated the thought, like it was the greatest thing in their life. She could already feel the perpetual headache that she sported during the holidays bubbling behind her eyes dully. Her stomach was already beginning to tighten at the thought of having to sit through family dinner with her father and mother. Her chest was already knotted up at the mere anticipation of seeing her sick and deranged brother again.

"I'll just have to keep myself sane until then." Maddie said in a dejected voice. "Just close my ears and eat lots of ice cream."

"That's the best plan I've ever heard." Sirius said with a loud laugh. "Don't get fat, though. I happen to love you the size you are."

"I don't understand how I could have avoided you for an entire month." Maddie said, shaking her head in confusion. She reached her hand down to his, grabbing a hold of it tentatively.

"I don't either. Must have been miserable to be without my presence for so long."

"Shut up."

"I think I'm entitled to a little ribbing after the silent treatment I got." Sirius said simply, leaning back in his seat with his arms thrown behind his head. He kept her hand firmly grasped in his, rubbing small circles on the back with his large thumb.

"I'm sorry, Sirius."

"I know you are, Mads." Sirius said, giving her a small wink. "Doesn't mean I am going to give you an easy time about it."

The two of them sat in comfortable silence for the remainder of the train ride. When there was only about fifteen minutes left Rory, Alice, and Lily came crashing back into the compartment to gather their things. They all eyed the way Sirius immediately moved away from Maddie with interest, but said nothing about it. Nobody said anything about the fact that Alice's makeup was smudged and mussed up. All of the girls gave Alice small looks of surprise before turning back to their own stuff and continuing in their process of gathering it all together. Sirius gave Maddie one smirking smile before he slipped out of the compartment, offering all of them a small wave and a wink at Maddie, before leaving the rest of them in silence.

Maddie felt the eyes of all of them on her for a palpable moment before she finally answered all of their questions with a smile and a laugh.

"So, all if forgiven between the dynamic duo?" Rory asked, slipping on her patchwork jacket over her shoulders.

Maddie simply nodded, slipping her black heels onto her feet. She pulled her purple pea coat out from its spot on the rack and pulled it on, adjusting it so that it fell on her shoulders exactly how it should. She smoothed her dress for a moment before she pulled her bag over her shoulder. Her feet already began to ache at the impossibly high heels that her mother had insisted she wear for when she saw her family again. She reached her hands up to make sure her hair would be up to standards, before she finally deemed herself presentable to step off of the train.

"You ladies will write right?" Maddie asked, looking at all of them in turn.

"I don't know if I'll be able to Maddie." Rory said sadly, moving over to pull her into a hug. "But, I'll definitely bring you something exciting. Maybe a nice exotic looking man. Covered in muscles and..."

"I am sure we will see each other at some point." Lily said simply, cutting off Rory's words, patting Maddie on the back.

The train pulled to a stop, alerting all of them that it was time to separate. Maddie gave each of them a quick hug before she reluctantly pulled her bag over her shoulder. Her mother and father had made it very clear when she was first year that they didn't like to see her associating with people who were not a part of their circle. Maddie had thought it was best to just say her goodbyes on the train, rather than making her parents angry at her before they needed to be.

They would be angry enough at her before she knew it.

* * *

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	12. Chapter 12

_To the outside world we all grow old. But not to brothers and sisters. We know each other as we always were. We know each other's hearts. We share private family jokes. We remember family feuds and secrets, family griefs and joys. We live outside the touch of time. _

_- Clara Ortega_

* * *

_December 19, 1975 5 p.m._

As soon as Maddie stepped off the train she was immediately intercepted by a very fidgety and slight looking house elf. She had never seen this particular elf before, leading her to think that her parents had hired her, or bought her more accurately, in the time that she had been gone from home. She was raggedly dressed in a dirty looking pillow case, one that she recognized as one of her older ones, making Maddie immediately feel bad for the small creature. She was frail in every sense of the word and lacked proper body muscle and fat, forcing Maddie to consider pulling her into her arms to keep her from catching a nasty cold. She knew her parents were the worst sort to have to be around, even to humans. She imagined it was pure misery to work for them, considering how bad it was being related to them. She attempted to smile at the little elf, only to have her shudder violently before hurrying off in the direction of the Steele's, bowing heavily to Maddie as she showed her to way.

That was the first sign, of many Maddie was sure, of the impending misery that was coming her way.

Her mother did not smile at her when she approached. The little elf scurrying along behind her with her large trunk bowed to them quickly before moving to a place that was out of her parent's sharp line of vision. Persephone merely looked at Maddie's choice in clothes and at her hair for the briefest of moments, her face scrunching up like it so often did, before nodding her head at her briefly as she turned back to the conversation she was having with William's wife, Gilda.

Persephone was immaculately dressed in a long flowing black rain coat and calf high black boots. A deep purple scarf was wrapped so tightly around her thin neck, Maddie was surprised she wasn't struggling to breath. Her hair was pulled up out of her face, as always, making Maddie immediately miss the easy softness and care of the friends she had left behind on the train. Gilda, in sharp contrast, was wearing every possibly color she could find. Maddie felt slightly nauseous as she looked at her. Even her eyes were painted a nasty shade of blue and her lips were an alarming shade of pink.

Her father placed a rough hand on her shoulder, drawing her out of her thought while pulling her closer to the family, before he spoke to her in his deep, intimidating voice.

"Madeleine, I trust you had a good semester?" She felt his hand flex through her thick winter coat, digging into her shoulder painfully. She had to make a conscious effort to keep from crying out at the pressure. It was an uncomfortable feeling having her father standing next to her. She had almost forgotten.

She nodded quickly, just so that he would stop touching her faster.

In truth, the semester had been one of her worst to date.

"Madeleine, it has been far too long." Gilda moved forward, plastering a very fake smile onto her pale face.

Gilda, while not traditionally unfortunate looking, had always had an off putting and souring effect on Maddie. She was small, alarmingly so in fact, and impossibly thin even by pureblood standards. Her hair, which was an obnoxious shade of unnatural black that made her skin look slightly sickly almost all of the time, was set in pristine curls down the side of her face and back. Her teeth were far too big for her mouth, resulting in her smiles coming out more like snarls. Maddie had often thought she looked like and overgrown horse wearing lipstick, and she was quite sure she wasn't the only one that felt that way. She had seen the scowls her bother sent Gilda whenever she wasn't looking. Like all other pureblood marriages, theirs had been out of convenience and necessity, resulting in the complete lack of marital bliss that all high pureblood families experienced and came to expect.

Gilda smiled widely at her, stretching her painted pink lips over her too-big white teeth.

"Gilda, how are you?"' Maddie watched, as if in slow motion, as Gilda pulled her into a supremely uncomfortable embrace. She felt all of her bones, her nasty protruding bones, pressing into her as she hugged her. Her perfume wafted over Maddie, forcing her to fight the gag that was fighting to make its way out.

"I'm wonderful Madeleine, more than wonderful, actually." Gilda smiled even wider, making Maddie cringe inwardly even more. "William and I are expecting our first child. I hope it's a handsome boy. Could you imagine a little William running about?"

She looked positively giddy at the thought. Her face twisted even more as she smiled, pulling Maddie into another excited hug. She swayed them back and forth for a moment, positively vibrating with excitement at the thought of being a mother, before she mercifully released her back into her previous position. Maddie straighten her coat immediately, shaking her hair over her shoulder as she moved as far away from Gilda as was respectable.

"You're going to be an aunt." Gilda said, as if that was the sort of thing that Maddie wished to hear at the moment.

Maddie was sure, after growing up around her brother and hearing the numerous stories about Gilda, that they were the last sort of people that should be procreating. She suddenly pictured a child that looked as intimidating as William with the personality of Gilda. It was a travesty. A true and complete travesty to all that would be involved. She glanced at her parents, hoping to see her horror reflected on her face, only to be met with the exact opposite. Her mother was attempting to smile while her father looked completely and utterly proud.

She felt the sudden urge to vomit.

"That is wonderful, Gilda." Maddie was rather thankful that Gilda wasn't very smart, otherwise she would have picked up on her horribly hidden bluffing. "I am sure William is really happy about it."

"He's ecstatic. He can't stop talking about it."

Probably a lie.

"He wished he could have come to see you home, but you know how work is at the bank this close to the holidays."

Also a lie.

"He said he wished you the best and couldn't want to see you at home."

Definitely a lie.

Maddie managed to plaster a fake smile onto her face as she looked up at her enthusiastic sister-in-law. Gilda gave her one more unwanted hug before stepping back and taking her spot next to Maddie's mother. Persephone glanced at Gilda for a moment, judgment in her cold eyes, before she turned her gaze back towards the throngs of people around them. Her mouth curled up when she caught sight of an obviously muggle family embracing happily near the entrance to the platform. Maddie could almost hear the atrocious thoughts flitting about her head as she stared down the small family. It was a wonder, or a blessing, that the thoughts hadn't turned into public outbursts. Persephone Steele had never been one for subtlety and class. Maddie had found herself apologizing for her mother's behavior more time than she liked to admit over the years. Persephone turned up her nose even further before she faced her husband, a sour expression marring her face, her mouth poised in a pucker of complaint.

"Let us leave." She did not even bother to hide her disgust. "I grow tired of this sort of unnaturally mixed company. It makes my skin crawl."

Maddie was impressed her mother had held off with her hateful comments as long as she had. Normally it took her less than a minute flat to start in on her hate filled diatribe about those around her; even less time if Maddie wasn't dressed and preened to her standards. She normally took every chance she could find to spew her hatred and venomous words at unsuspecting bystanders. It was rather odd for her to have said something so mild and tame. Maddie wasn't sure if she should be alarmed or altogether thankful for the momentary lax in her mother's normal mode of operating.

Her father's hand clamped down onto Maddie's shoulder once more, squeezing it even harder than before. She felt his fingers leaving what she was sure were going to be angry bruises above her shoulder along the line of her bone. She knew better than to complain about it. She blinked rapidly, watching her father's other arm as he gestured. He snapped his free hand over at the elf loudly, drawing some stares from the families around them, not even bothering to look over at her, before he gestured for all of them to follow him towards the entrance and out into the main area of King's Cross Station.

* * *

The Steele family, unfortunately plus Gilda, arrived back in Salem approximately three hours after they had picked up Maddie. They had forced her, despite her nasty looks and poorly hidden jibes at Gilda, to sit through an entire meal at her mother's favorite restaurant in London. It had been a tradition, much to the chagrin of the more rational children in the family, for all of the years that the Steele family had been attending Hogwarts. Maddie had always found the experience to be rather miserable and unnecessary. It wasn't as if anyone in her family actually enjoyed each others company longer than was needed to send a few well-placed and well thought out insults flying about. The whole experience felt altogether pointless.

Gilda, the insufferable cow, had not quieted about her joys of impending motherhood the entire meal; the joys that Maddie could not bring herself to sympathize with. Maddie had almost hit her at least six times. She would have if she hadn't been with her parents and in public.

With each hour she spent away from her friends, Maddie missed them more and more. They seemed so wonderful and caring compared to the people she was suddenly around.

She even missed Peter suddenly and completely.

Maddie couldn't even fathom how miserable her break was going to be if she was already missing them as much as she was only three hours into her break.

After being forced to suffer through the impossibly long meal in her designated seat next to Gilda, Maddie had never been more aware of how much she missed her biological sister. Gilda never seemed to be able to shut her mouth, even when she was eating, resulting in Maddie disliking her even more than she usually did.

She was quite sure she hated her by the end of the impossibly long meal.

Her mother and father said nothing to her when they arrived home. They merely looked at her in the same judgmental way that they usual did before moving away towards their perpetual private and separate lives, leaving Maddie and Gilda standing alone. Gilda attempted to force her company upon Maddie before she saw that, despite her usual atrocious social perception, Maddie had left her standing alone in the grand foray of the Steele family home. Normally, as much as Maddie hated to admit it about herself, she would have felt bad about leaving Gilda standing awkwardly alone in the marble and stone entrance way. It wasn't considered to be good form. She would have felt bad, as society deemed was a necessary response to abandoning her sister-in-law, if she hadn't been treated to a two hour long conversation with the vapid and unpleasant woman. That was more time with her than Maddie had ever planned or wanted to expend.

She was quite sure she could never see Gilda again and it would still be too soon.

Maddie practically ran up the massive staircase to the third floor landing. She felt the excitement of seeing her sister after many long months filling her up as she clacked her way up towards the large area that housed the children's rooms.

William, upon his marrying of Gilda, had moved into his own completely functional wing of the family home, leaving the hallway to be occupied by only Maddie and Abigail. Maddie hadn't been able to stop herself from being delighted at the thought of the possibility of not having to see William every single day. He had, thankfully, chosen to take his meals in his own wing of the massive house, resulting in Maddie not seeing him for days at a time. It was a blessing if she had ever seen one. Abigail had been quieter about her delight, but Maddie knew it was there.

It was hard not to be delighted at William spending less time with them.

Maddie nearly tripped over her heels as she hurried down the long hallway. Abigail's ornately decorated door was open, indicating that she was inside. The warm light that Abigail had always been partial to leaked out into the hallway, lighting up the entrance. It delighted Maddie to see her sister's room looking so inviting, spurring her to move even faster towards the door. She didn't even bother to knock as she hurried inside, throwing her purse haphazardly onto the hard wood floor with a small bang.

Abigail, who had placed herself gracefully in the window seat on the far side of the room, looked up at the sudden noise, surprise written across her normally serene face. She immediately shot up from her spot, placing her worn book down by her side, before she rocketed across the room with a very wide smile lighting up her face. She almost knocked Maddie over with the force of her embrace, sending them both staggering backwards as she squeezed her so tightly Maddie lost her breath for a small moment. Maddie let out a small startled laugh as she hugged her sister back, her discomfort and annoyance from her time spent with her parents and Gilda completely forgotten instantly.

"Oh Maddie." Abigail breathed out into the soft curls that Maddie had worked so hard to perfect before leaving the castle. She felt Abigail squeeze her even tighter before she finally relinquished her death like grip on her. "It has been a total nightmare! I am so happy you're home."

"School was a nightmare this term." Maddie said simply, plodding her way past Abigail towards her massive cushy looking bed.

"I heard. Gilda thought it was her duty to relay the gossip she heard to me directly." Abigail responded, pulling her messy brown hair up into a haphazard bun. Abigail looked like she was dressed for a party in one of the numerous nice dresses their mother had insisted on having made for them. It was soft pink color and flowed all the way to the middle of her calves over the opaque black tights she wore. Maddie had spied a pair of shiny black heels sitting by the door, indicating that Abigail had just returned from schmoozing of some kind.

"She never shuts up does she?" Maddie said with a small laugh.

"At least she annoys Mother just as much. I love seeing her eye twitch."

"I forgot how secretly snarky you are, Abs."

"Only with you."

Abigail sat down next to her, pulling her stocking clad legs up underneath her, before she placed her slender hand on Maddie shoulder. Maddie looked over at her, feeling all of the stress she had been feeling slipping away from her as she looked at her sister. Abigail had always had a calming effect on her, even when they were fighting, and Maddie had found, looking at her, that she had missed her more than she could have ever realized. Her eyes offered peace, her smile was always soothing, and her face always welcomed those in around her.

"I heard what happened with MacNair."

"Everybody heard about that." Maddie said with a small huff. "Were Mother and Father horribly upset?"

"Father yelled more than usual." Abigail said like it was the most normal thing in the world to be saying. "I think Mother was secretly proud, but you know her face doesn't move so it is impossible to tell."

"It was terrible." Maddie said, sinking into the plush covers even further. "Sirius thought it was the perfect opportunity to pull a prank."

"Of course he would." Abigail let a small laugh. "Did he at least get a kiss for his efforts?"

Maddie let out a loud groan involuntarily. "Not you too?"

"I am fairly positive I was the first to notice that you and him were destined to have beautiful little black-haired babies."

"Shut up."

"Don't be rude." Abigail said with a small wink at Maddie.

Maddie nodded her head, fully appreciating how laid back Abigail was when they were alone. She was the epitome of well-kept and well-behaved when they were around their parents and their societal friends. It wasn't until the two of them were alone that Abigail felt comfortable enough to open her normally very conservative mouth. It was as if she bottled up all of her anger towards her family and finally let it out once Maddie was there to share it with her.

"I heard you're getting married." Maddie retorted, effectively wiping the mocking look off of Abigail's face.

"Don't remind me." Abigail let out a small anguished sounding squeak. "Mother is taking me dress shopping next week. Will you go?"

"Of course. I wouldn't let you do that without being there to make fun of you." Maddie paused, shooting her own small wink at Abigail. "Did Mother and Father tell you who the lucky bloke is?"

"No, but they have made some hints."

"I do not envy you, Abs." Maddie let out a low whistle. "I mean, I cannot imagine. It sounds absolutely horrible."

Much to Maddie's horror, Abigail began to shake slightly, pushing herself into Maddie's side so suddenly she fell back into the bed further. She felt her chest shuddering as she struggled to breathe normally. It was a conversation that the two of them had had in the past. However, there had never been an actual guy involved. It was just an idea, a torturous thought. It was something all pureblood children knew was a distinct possibility. Maddie had never liked to picture her future for that reason. It made her far too sad.

"Maddie, I'm so scared." Maddie felt her chest clench up as her sister spoke into the skin of her shoulder. "I don't know what to do, and that frightens me. William won't listen to me, Mother won't listen to me. And I can't tell them about h..."

"About what, Abs?"

Abigail's face immediately paled as she seemed to realize what she had almost just said. She backtracked almost instantly, shaking her head in a quick motion.

"I..." She stuttered, looking around her room.

"It will be alright, Abigail." Maddie knew she didn't believe her words. "I'm here for you."

Abigail began to shake even more violently, letting out small sobs as she pushed herself into Maddie even further sending them both back into the soft covers in heap. Maddie pulled her hand out from underneath her, immediately bringing it up to her sister's soft hair before stroking it in what she hoped was a soothing fashion. She felt the soft curls catching on her fingers, forcing her to pause and neaten it for a moment before she continued her ministrations. It alarmed her to have her sisters crying so heavily into her shoulder. Abigail was supposed to be the one to offer her guidance and comfort, not the other way around. Maddie couldn't help but feel like she was horribly prepared for the task.

"I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you even if you marry a toad."

Abigail let a watery laugh before crying even harder into Maddie's shoulder.

"It's going to be a miserably long break isn't it?" Abigail asked, finally managing to calm her breathing slightly.

"It's going to be horrible." Maddie said simply, sinking into the bed in the hopes that neither of them would have to come out until it was the middle of January.

* * *

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	13. Chapter 13

_Time spent with cats is never wasted._

_-Sigmund Freud._

* * *

_December 24, 1975_

The rain, which Maddie considered to be a rather well-placed and foreboding omen, did not cease for the week and a half leading up to her family's annual Christmas Eve party. It crashed and washed over the massive house endlessly, making all those who lived in Magical Salem and around it feel as if they were drowning. It covered the roads, making mud pits out of almost all of them and hindering those who had the misfortune of being outside for longer than five minutes. The trees were so soaked and waterlogged some of them drooped under the weight of the moisture, making them look sad and altogether useless.

Maddie had sat in her room for the majority of her time. She ventured out only when she was forced to for meals and forced time with her mother, resulting in her having a sour mood that never seemed to go away. She had, at one of her more dismal points, taken to counting the drops of rain on her bedroom window to simply pass the endless hours. Her sister had taken her to go shop for wedding dresses but that had only lasted a couple of hours, leaving her feeling even more bored than she had been before they had even left the house. She had been bored and miserable for far too long.

Maddie shifted in her seat by the window, feeling her legs groan from the movement. Her feet started to tingle as she moved them out from underneath her. She looked down at her mismatched socks, imagining that she was sitting in her dormitory room at Hogwarts rather than her oversized barely lived in bedroom.

She imagined she wouldn't want to bang her head against the window if she would have been at Hogwarts.

She stood up, dropping her purple blanket down in her previously occupied spot, and made her way towards her closet. Her leggings, which she was ashamed to admit she had been wearing for three days straight, were starting to smell.

She found she didn't care, however.

Maddie had far too much on her mind to care about the status of her clothing.

Three days into her stay back at her home, she had suddenly and alarmingly remembered she had agreed to get information on her family. She had blissfully forgotten that little tidbit when she had been spending quality time with her completely normal sister. The thought had practically slapped her in the face when she had been sitting in her room all alone, watching the rain slip down the glass of her window. She had felt anxiety welling up inside her ever since she had remembered it. Her hands couldn't seem to stop shaking, her palms couldn't stop sweating, her legs couldn't stop from twitching when she sat still.

Maddie couldn't bring herself to look her father in the eye in the few times she had crossed paths with him. She had felt, and still did in the back of her mind, that he would see right through her. He would know, she was positive, that she was planning on spilling all she found out as soon as she got back to school. She was terrified that they would find out that she hated them all. She could hardly wrap her mind around what exactly she was supposed to be listening for that would be considered more alarming than the rest. Everything they said was alarming. Everything they did made Maddie cringe and wish she was back at Hogwarts with her friends.

That was the main reason she had spent almost all of her time in her room alone.

She shook her legs out, looking around her room for a moment.

Her mother had ordered a dress be made for her for the party that night. It was hanging, almost tauntingly, across from her on the outside of her dresser. It was a deep purple, which Maddie was perfectly okay with, and flowed all the way down to the floor. It was paired with a pair of sky high black heels and a set of stunning diamond earrings. She had been surprised that her mother had picked something so pretty. It was so unlike her in so many ways.

She shuffled her feet across the floor, still keeping her eyes on the gorgeous dress. She almost found herself feeling excited at the thought of wearing it. It felt so soft to the touch; it made her smile for the first time in days.

"I thought you would like that dress."

Maddie immediately turned around at the sound of the voice, folding her arms in front of her out of habit.

Abigail smiled at the reaction, moving further into the room. She made her way over to Maddie, throwing her arm across her shoulders in a swift motion.

"You smell."

"No point in showering." Maddie said with a simple shrug.

"You are going to shower before tonight though?" Abigail asked, sounding almost unsure.

"Of course." Maddie let out a small laugh. "That's disgusting."

"Is Sirius coming?" Abigail asked.

"I would imagine so. His family always comes."

"Are you excited to see him? I heard you crying a couple days ago. I imagine he misses you just as much."

Maddie immediately felt her face blanch. She had hoped that no one would hear that. Her house was so enormous, it wasn't unfeasible that her little emotional breakdown would go unnoticed. Apparently, she was wrong. She hadn't been crying because she missed Sirius. She missed him more than she liked to think about, but that wasn't the reason she was crying. She was crying, as embarrassing as it was, because she had once again been thinking about what would happen if her parents found out what she was planning on doing. She couldn't stop her mind from going through all of the terrible scenarios. She couldn't stop herself from imaging her father's face when he found. In her mind it wasn't an 'if' but a definite 'when'. It was a terrifying thought to imagine betraying her family in the worst sort of way. She hadn't been able to stop herself from bursting into messy tears in the middle of the night when she had been unable to sleep for the fourth night in a row.

She thought it better to lie to Abigail rather than tell her the actual alarming truth.

"Yes, I miss him." Maddie said simply, avoiding eye contact with her sister.

"You should go shower before mother comes up and sees you still wearing the same clothes as yesterday, and the day before that, and the day be…"

"Shut up."

"Go get ready, stinky."

* * *

Maddie paid very little attention to what they had done to get her ready for the evening's festivities. She knew they curled her hair before putting it up in an elegant up do, but other that she didn't care. She had allowed them full access to her face, letting them paint her like the doll she was sure they were imagining she was. They had had to practically shove her feet into the impossibly tall heels before sending her one her way to wine and dine with her family.

She had taken her sweet time making it down the grand staircase. Her shoes had made that hard, considering they clacked like horse hooves, but she had still walked as slow as possible. Her dress fanned out in a tiny train behind her, shimmering in the falsely warm lighting of her cold house. She could already feel the goose bumps making their way up her arms and legs. She had been allowed to wear stockings, but that did little to stop her body from shivering.

Her family, as atrocious as they were, cleaned up rather nicely, she had to admit. Her father wore his finest dress robes of black. He wore a silky black tie and starkly white shirt. His hair was immaculately done and his shoes were shined to perfection. Her mother wore a, shockingly, red dress with an altogether alarming neckline that dipped too low for Maddie's liking. Abigail looked as beautiful as ever in her midnight blue dress. She did not smile, which Maddie was sure had to do with her impending betrothal announcement. Gilda, who was attached to William like a sore, was practically buzzing in excitement in her bright pink dress. Maddie could see the beginnings of a bump on her stomach underneath the bright fabric. William was dressed just like his father, with slightly more hair grease.

"Madeleine, you look lovely." Gilda practically shouted, rushing forward to pull Maddie the rest of the way down the stairs.

"You too, Gilda."

Gilda positively beamed at the thought.

"Madeleine, the guests will be arriving any moment." Her mother informed her, almost cracking a minuscule smile at the thought. "Please make sure you and your sister are prepared to greet them with dignity by the front door."

"Yes, Ma'am." Maddie said, moving away from Gilda towards the scowling Abigail. "Let's go."

Abigail nodded blearily as the two of them made their way towards the lavishly decorated from door. It seemed her parents had spared no expense for this year's party. The chandeliers were covered in ice and snow, raining down small flakes onto the tops of theirs heads. The lights were dimmed and fabulous made. Christmas trees were in every possible available space, filled to the brim with presents underneath. The house elves scurried about, carrying trays of food and wine. The carpets had been cleaned; the walls and surfaces had been dusted within in an inch of their lives. Even the baseboards were shined. Everything was clean and perfect, exactly how her mother imagined their lives to be.

"She really went all out this year." Maddie said, glancing over at Abigail.

"Hmm." Abigail merely nodded, keeping her gaze fixed on the door.

Maddie and Abigail fell into uncomfortable silence after Abigail refused to speak. They both watched the door, squeezing their hands together as they waited for the first of the guest to arrive. Maddie shifted nervously on her feet, feeling her arches already beginning to ache from the height of her shoes. Time seemed to pass slower as they waited for people to begin arriving. Maddie thought she was going to go insane in the silence until the doorbell rang out clearly and crisply in the cavernous house.

The house elf by the door practically tripped over themselves as she struggled to get the door open quickly.

"Here were go." Maddie murmured to Abigail, squeezing her side with her hand in comfort before she plastered her fakest smile on her face.

Walburga Black and Orion Black, much to Maddie's surprise, stepped through the door first, dropping their coats on the poor house elf without even looking at her. Walburga looked over Maddie and Abigail, judgment in her dark eyes for a moment before she moved towards them. Orion simply eyed them for a moment before slinking away to find, what Maddie assumed was, her father. He nodded to them as he passed them by, giving his wife a simple look as he left.

"Merry Christmas, Mrs. Black." Abigail said in a monotone. "You look lovely."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, girl." Walburga said simply. She turned over her shoulder, crossing her intense arms over her chest. "Sirius, Regulus."

Both boys, dressed in their absolute best, came hurrying in behind their mother. Sirius, as handsome as ever, was scowling at his mother, seeming to not notice Maddie at first. Regulus immediately saw her, eyes lighting up in a mischievous way as he moved closer to their mother. He straightened out his dress robes in a foppish manner as he moved to stand in front of the less than impressed sisters. Abigail nodded at him, turning away to leave Maddie standing with the three Black's on her own without another word, indicating that Walburga should follow after her to go greet Persephone.

Regulus moved forward, grabbing a hold of Maddie's cold hand immediately. He placed a delicate kiss on her hand, which she had noticed was his favorite form of greeting her, before he moved back to get a better looked at her. Sirius had finally seemed to get his barring at the small display. He immediately scowled as his brother kissed her hand, crossing his arms over his chest. Maddie managed to shoot him a small smile before she turned her gaze back on Regulus.

"Regulus, how are you?"

"Better now that I get to see you." He said with a small wink. "You look absolutely stunning in purple. The color of royalty, I'm sure you know."

"Go slobber over someone else, Reggie." Sirius said, stepping forward to remove Maddie's hand from Regulus' grip.

"Madeleine doesn't mind, do you?" Regulus faked a pout for a moment until he saw the scowl on Maddie's face. "Fine. Although, I seem to remember a time when you like me more than you liked this idiot." He gestured to Sirius with a small wave of his hand. "I hope you'll save me a dance later."

"If you stop kissing my hand I will." Maddie said simply, earning a scowl from Sirius.

"I don't know if I'll be able to stop, love."

"Go away." Sirius snapped, pushing Regulus in the direction of the party.

"Testy Bastard." Regulus said, giving Sirius a small punch to the stomach before he left. "Madeleine, if you get tired of his terrible company, come find me. I am sure I can keep you entertained." He called over his shoulder before disappearing altogether into the now gathering crowd.

They both watched him for a moment before Maddie immediately launched herself at Sirius, catching him completely off guard. He wrapped his long arms around her out of habit, lifting her up off her feet for a moment. He held her, humming in amusement when he heard he let out a small amused laugh at the duration of the embrace. He placed a light kiss on her cheek before setting her down, wrapping his arm around her own. He eyed her up and down for a moment.

"As much as I hate to agree with my prat of a bother, you do look beautiful."

Maddie felt her face blush as he looked at her up and down. "I missed you."

"Has it been bad?"

"No. I've been in my room the whole time. I've just really missed you guys." Maddie squeezed his arm as she saw some of the pureblood elite eyeing her and Sirius as they made their way into the party. "It just been stressful, knowing what happened to those muggles. My window faces out towards the field where is happened."

Sirius let out a low hiss, pulling her closer to him. "It isn't that long until we're back at Hogwarts, Mads."

"Yes, but thinking about all I have to do until then stresses me out. I've been sweating. I don't sweat."

"That's gross." Sirius said with a small laugh, immediately stepping back from in mock disgust. He nudged her side when he saw her face fall. "I'm kidding."

"No you're not. It is gross." Maddie said with a shrug, shifting on her sore feet. "I can't help it though. I feel like they all know what you guys asked me to do."

"They're too stupid to know, Mads." Sirius said, hoping to get her to calm down. "Now come on, let's dance before your mother insists you spend the rest of you evening with the most available purebloods."

"Try not to be too jealous." Maddie said, rather daringly.

"I have nothing to be jealous of. We all know you've been in love with me ever since you set your eyes on my handsome little eleven year old self."

"I could just go find Regulus…" Maddie trailed off, enjoying the scowl that crossed over his face.

"Just shut up and dance with me, Maddie."

* * *

Rory had never been so hot in her entire life. The Congo, which she had always assumed was less hot than people made it out to be, was so steamy her hair had doubled in volume since she had arrived. Her face had never sweated so much. She wasn't even away her lips were capable of sweating. It was a fact that she had uncovered about five minutes into her arrival.

Her mother, who had paid no mind to the humidity and heat of their vacation spot, had been pointing out her daughters discomfort at every possible moment, making Rory almost wish she was back up in Magical Salem. Her father was quiet about his wife's enthusiasm, choosing instead to keep his crooked nose buried in a book about Magical Creatures.

The small family had arrived, via poorly done apparition into a small clearing filled with two tents, a small fire pit, and a small table which was obviously made for holding heavier items. Rory had had to fight her groan as she had looked at the tents. She could only hope that the second tent was for her. She couldn't imagine having to share one with her parents for the entirety of the break. Her mother's hygiene wasn't the greatest and her father tended to be gassy when he was uncomfortable, which was all the time.

She had been woefully wrong in her hopes, however. They were sharing the ramshackle camping experience with another family.

Rory had kept to her side of the terrifyingly small tent for the good part of the first day as her awkward family waited for the arrival of the second family. Her mother was practically shaking with excitement at the thought of the other family coming. Her father didn't really seem to care. Rory was counting down the hours until she would be able to go back to Hogwarts. She did not know the other family that was going to join them, and she, at the beginning of their trip, couldn't really bring herself to care. She imagined they were just as batty as her mother if they had agreed to spend a month in the Congo with her without contact with the outside world. They wouldn't make their trip better. The Congo would still suck, Rory was sure.

It was too hot. It was too bug infested. It was too far away from Maddie and James.

It was too terrible and she had been sure she was going to hate every single minute of the entire experience.

"Am I allowed to go for a walk or am I going to get eaten by a lion or some other shit like that?" Rory asked from her camp bed, forcing both of her parents to look up from their individual activities.

"Language, Aurora." Her father said blandly, keeping his gaze on his worn book.

"I think its self-expression. Say something worse, Aurora dear. Cleanse the mouth's pallet of all those stuffy society words you have to use around your snooty friends." Her mother hooted excitedly from her spot on the floor. She almost knocked over her pile of rainbow colored rocks as she peered up at Rory with a wide smile. "Phooey on conformity. I have always thought say what you want, and apologize later. "

"That's a really healthy attitude to have Mom." Rory said, unable to keep the dry tone out of her voice. "However, that doesn't answer my question."

"What question?" Stella asked, shifting even more to look at her daughter.

"Am I going to die if I go for a walk?"

"Not if you don't attract any Sniggleils." Stella said, ignoring the stupefied look on her daughter's face.

"What the hell is a Sniggleils?"

"Language, Aurora Starry Knight." Her father didn't even look up from his book.

"It's a snake-like creature with six rows of teeth and one leg. Quite frightening." Her mother said impishly, acting as if the creature was real.

"Can I go?"

"Would you like me to come with you, Supernova?"

Rory couldn't stop herself from cringing as her mother used the nickname she had been given when she was a small child. "No, Mom. I'm good. I'll yell if I see anything with big teeth. Or one leg."

"Have fun, dear."

"Be back in an hour." Her dad said, finally managing to look up from his book to peer at her with a slightly concerned face. Rory nodded her head, ducking out of the uncomfortably small tent. It was not even dark outside, making her smile to herself. As much as she wanted away from her parents after spending less than three hours with them, she didn't exactly want to get eaten alive by some bloody animal. It was unheard of for a wizard to be killed by a non-magical animal. It had never happened, to her knowledge, and she wasn't about to be the first one.

Imagine the embarrassment if she was to be killed by a non-magical creature. Sirius Black would never let her live it down, even in death.

The jungle that surrounded their small camp was overly green in Rory's opinion. It was over-flowing with plant life that she had never even heard of and put off a steamy and greenish aroma that she couldn't quite place. There were large flowers of all sorts of color and pattern scattered in with the other green plants and brown roots. There were vines snaking up all of the massive trees that disappeared into the thick canopy above them. She thought she could see eyes peering out at her from behind the thick underbrush, but she could have imagined that.

She made her way over to the line of the trees, pulling her wand out as a preventative measure.

She wished, rather suddenly, that Maddie was there to go into the jungle with her. She remembered when they were younger and all the times they would spend on the outskirts of Magical Salem in the trees and along the sides of the streams avoiding spending time with their families. She imagined Maddie was miserable, stuck in her massive house. Maddie wasn't the outdoorsy type, but Rory knew that even the jungle would be better than the Steele home.

Rory walked into the line of the trees.

She found she quite liked the quietness that engulfed her when she was alone surrounded by nothing but nature. It allowed her mind to wander as she picked her way over roots and piles of leaves. She moved farther and farther away from their camp, marking the trees with her wand with a simple swipe. Her mother had let it slip long ago about the reach of the Ministry of Magic. They couldn't track her magic outside of their own country, resulting in her using her magic completely whenever they were on vacation in some exotic place.

The sounds of the exotic birds and creatures were a nice subtle background noise as she explored around her. She knew she was acting very much like a typical Knight, but she couldn't help her curiosity. She didn't believe in the ridiculous creatures her mother did, but that didn't stop her from having a begrudging fascination with the world of animals and plants. She imagined it was almost genetic. She had always been enormously fond of cats, dogs, and even more so, Knifflers. She loved their fur and their little noses and their tiny little feet. James, the git, had always made fun of her for her love of animals. He had called her loony just like her mother. Maddie had always secretly indulged her, often taking her to the pet shop in Magical Salem when she would much rather be doing something else.

She wondered, as she almost tripped over yet another branch, what Maddie would say if Rory attempted to bring home a tiger or something like that.

She had always wanted a cat. Why not a tiger or a lion?

Rory had felt like she had traveled into the deepest part of the jungle. It was an obvious exaggeration, but she couldn't help but smile ate the thrill of it. She smiled at the thought of never leaving the jungle and becoming a wild woman. She could live without showering. She could live without running water. It wasn't a viable option, however, as she knew her mother would more than likely be delighted at the thought and insist on joining her. And that was something Rory was not willing to do.

She shook her head, moving forward farther into the thicket of the jungle. She loved the way the ground smelled moist and substantially under her feet. She rather liked the peace and quiet that came with the jungle. Rory knew she had gone way past the hour her father had allotted when she stopped in a small clearing in the middle of the forest. She had not been paying attention to anything once she had allowed her mind to wander, resulting in her being embarrassingly and atrociously lost.

A wild woman, she was not obviously.

She glanced around her, pulling her wand up to her closer out of reflex. She had forgotten to keep marking the trees a while back. It was stupid. She was stupid.

The sounds of the creatures around her were louder than she had been aware of them begin earlier on in her trip. They filled her head as she turned in a full circle in her spot. She boots, which her mother had insisted on her wearing, scuffed the ground as she attempted to get her bearing. Her hands were soaked in sweat and dirt, making it hard to keep her wand in her hand. She was sure her hair was enormous due to the massive amount of humidity and natural steam in the jungle. Her back was coated in sweat.

She recognized nothing around her. All of the trees looked the same. All the leaves were like cutouts of each other.

She was lost.

"Well shit."

* * *

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	14. Chapter 14

_This is no time for ease and comfort. It is time to dare and endure._

_-Winston Churchill_

* * *

_December 24, 1975_

The party, which was altogether like all of them that came before it, was in full swing by the time Maddie managed to detract herself from Sirius vice-like grip on her waist. Her face was flushed, her skin uncomfortably moist from the sweat that had bloomed out underneath her fine dress. Sirius had conveniently ignored the looks she had been giving him as they danced, choosing instead to keep twirling her around in the most undignified manner he could think of. Her mother had given her the most scathing look she could muster at the sight of the two of them on the large dance floor, resulting in Maddie moving away from Sirius altogether until her family was no longer glaring at her like she had offered them a personal insult.

She smoothed her hands over her dress, ignoring the pain in her feet from her impossibly long dance with Sirius, as she made her way over to the large table overflowing with the finest of refreshments. The more homely looking pureblood women, Maddie immediately chastised herself for thinking so, were crowded around it, munching on small sandwiches. She could see their eyes watching around them, waiting for a boy to ask them to dance.

It was altogether sad to look at.

Maddie sidled up next to them, hoping to blend in and avoid Sirius whisking her away for another exhausting dance. Three of the girls looked up at her approach, moving aside to allow her to stand next to them. They were triplets, all wearing the same dress in different colors, with the most unfortunate shade of blonde hair and dull looking eyes. They were of the larger sort and were already sweating through their dresses. Maddie pitied them. They wouldn't be asked to dance unless it was a forced dance by the older members present at the party.

"Evening, Madeleine." The most outgoing of the three said to her as a greeting. "This party is wonderful, will you give your mother and father our compliments?"

Maddie nodded dully, reaching a hand over to the table to grasp one of the many glasses of wine. She snatched it up carefully, not bothering to look over at the girl. She nursed the glass in her hands, glancing around the room at the people enjoying the lavish and vapid party. The triplets moved closer to her, large smiles appearing on their faces as they waited for what her answer would be. The fabric of their dress made squeaking noises as they moved.

"I will, Tilly."

She knew it was very unlikely that she would ever even broach the subject with her parents at all.

Tilly smiled widely, revealing uneven slightly yellow teeth as she did so. Her sisters, Hilly and Milly, both smiled as well. Maddie distinctly thought she heard them both hum in excitement at the thought, although Maddie couldn't really understand why.

"Thank you, Madeleine."

The four of them stood in silence after that, watching the dancer with four very different looks on their faces, until Milly spoke up ending the awkward expanse of time.

"I saw you dancing with Sirius. He couldn't keep his eyes off you. It was very romantic."

Maddie couldn't stop herself from rolling her eyes. "Did you?"

"I have heard rumors that the two of you might be next for a betrothal. I think you would be the luckiest girl in our whole society if you got to marry Sirius. He has to be the most handsome…"

"That match would be a tragedy, I'm sure."

All four of them looked over at the sound of the new voice. The triplets immediately set about smoothing their beyond smoothable appearances, checking each over with analyzing eyes. They smoothed their hair, cleaned up their makeup, and checked their teeth for any stray residue of food all in the hopes that the person joining them would notice them. Regulus Black did notice them, although for reasons that were entirely different than what any of them were hoping for.

"Regulus," Hilly practically shouted at him. He could barely manage to make eye contact with the unfortunate girl without wanting to leave her presence immediately. "You look so handsome this evening."

"I always look handsome." Regulus said with a small wave of his hand. Maddie couldn't stop herself from choking on the little bit of drink left in her glass.

"And your modesty rivals those questionable good looks." Maddie voice was dripping in sarcasm as she attempted to clear her throat.

"I didn't know you were hanging out with the Illy triplets." Regulus said, finally addressing her for the first time directly. He glanced over at the three girls next to Maddie. "They do not become you." His lip sneered into a grimace.

"Do not be outwardly rude, Regulus."

Regulus nodded his head once, much to Maddie's surprise, scanning over them for a moment. "If you think I'm about to ask any of you to dance…" He trailed off, smirking to himself when he saw all of the faces fall at his words. "Maddie, if you'll join me for a moment."

"I'm not going to dance with you." Maddie said simply, taking another swig of her wine. The three girls let out a gasp at her downright refusal. They glanced at each other, eyes wide, mouths slightly open in a way that highlighted their dim nature. She imagined the three of them would marry him on the spot if he asked them. They were the desperate sort of girls that grasped for all the meager male attention they could find. The Illy sisters were spinsters in the making if Maddie ever saw one.

"You danced with Sirius." Regulus countered, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Sirius isn't a nuisance." Maddie said simply, her voice finally taking on a slight edge. She attempted to take another sip of her wine, only to be met with only a few disappointing drops.

"Sirius is the definition of a nuisance."

The music blared for a moment in the background, drowning out Maddie's thoughts. She watched Lucius Malfoy conversing with a large group of men that had gradated in the years pervious to Maddie. They were laughing and drinking and drinking and laughing. She imagined the stuff they were saying, making her stomach squirm at the thought. Their wives, the poor souls, stood dutifully by their sides, quietly observing their husbands as they laughed and drank. She felt Regulus slide up next to her, felt the warmth and pressure of him bearing down on her until she was forced to step away from him once more.

"Come for a walk with me, Madeleine."

"I do not want to." Maddie knew she was being overly defiant.

"Please."

"I didn't know you knew that word."

"Now look at whose being outwardly rude." Regulus placed a hand on her back, attempting to steer her towards the large courtyard in the back of her house.

Maddie had finally had enough of his talking. She couldn't, for the life of her, understand why he had chosen that night to bother her as much as he had. It was as if he had forgotten that they hadn't spoken cordially to each other in almost four years. It was as if he had forgotten that she did not like him like in the slightest. He made her skin crawl, made her mind ache from the effort of keeping up with him as he talking in, what he thought were, charming circles of idle prattle and useless chatter. He made her mad for the simple fact that he looked so much like his brother, but was such an utter and complete pale imitation at best.

"I don't have time for you, Regulus."

Regulus stepped in front of her, his arms coming up to grasp her by the shoulders. He glanced at the empty wine glass in her hand before shooting a look at the three girls still watching the two of them with keen, beady eyes.

"It seems to me that you have all the time in the world now that my brother has stopped groping you in full view of the entire room."

Maddie let out a loud huff, slamming her empty glass down onto the table with such force it shattered. She shot him a scathing glare before walking out of the room, very aware of him hot on her heels and the surprised looks from those in the vicinity of the refreshment table.

The icy air hit her like a ton of bricks as soon as she was outside the warm party room. The lack of people and central heat made her skin pimple up almost immediately. A chill rushed through her body, making her shiver violently. The snow, which she had completely forgotten about in her anger and Regulus' words, dappled across the thin fabric of her dress, making moisture bloom up on the dark fabric. Regulus' feet crunched in the snow behind her as she walked farther and farther away from the loud party behind her.

"You're overreacting a bit, I think." Regulus' voice called to her over the loud noise of the wind.

"What the hell do you want?" Maddie snapped over her shoulder as she made her way towards the frozen fountain at the far side of the snow filled courtyard. "I am entirely tired of you, as I have been for the last four years. Now go away. I do not wish to speak to you, look at you, or even think about you. You made it very clear very long ago that you saw me as less than the dirt beneath your feet. There is no use pretending otherwise, you insufferable git."

"Such a nasty tone from such a pretty girl." Regulus pulled off his outer robes, placing them on her shivering shoulders. She attempted to shrug it off, a rather uselessly defiant motion considering how cold it was. It made him laugh out loud. "I have been thinking. There is some stuff I need to tell you."

"A terrible notion, if I am being honest."

Regulus let out a frustrated sound, forcing Maddie to turn around to face him. She wrapped his jacket around her shoulders tighter, feeling distinctly unhappy at the wretched turn of events her evening had taken. She regretted ever leaving Sirius in the first place. "I reall…"

"Maddie, I have been looking for you everywhere." Regulus let out a loud growl of annoyance as his brother approached the two of them in the snow. Sirius sidled his way over to them, taking in the look on Maddie's face with a quick sweep of his eyes. "I thought you were only going to get a drink and then I find you sneak off."

"She found better company." Regulus snapped, reaching over to take his cloak back from Maddie's shoulders. She shoved it at him with a prominent roll her eyes. "Maddie…"

"Shove off." Sirius snapped, not liking his little brother using such an informal way of speaking with Maddie.

Maddie shivered for a moment. She hated Christmas parties with all her being. She hated the cold that she always had to retreat to in order to escape the headache inducing noise that filled up her house. She hated the people. She hated the limp and dull conversations that required little to no brainpower on anyone's part. She hated it wholly and completely with everything she had and everything she would ever possess. She cared nothing for Regulus' thoughts; she hadn't since her second year in school. She cared nothing for what he had to say to her.

"Sirius, let's go for a walk."

She did not even spare another glance at Regulus before she pulled Sirius along behind her towards the massive gardens at the far side of the back of her house.

* * *

Rory had long ago thrown herself onto the moist jungle floor in absolute frustration. She buried her hands into the dirt, feeling the little bits underneath her fingers and nails. She thought about surviving solely on the nutrients from the dirt. She imagined it would be her only option considering she still had found no way out of her spot in the wretched jungle. She smushed her face into the dirt even further, rubbing her nose in it until it was fully buried to her cheeks. It smelled so foreign to the smells she was used to in both Magical Salem and at Hogwarts. She found she hated it, considering her circumstances.

Her hair stuck to the back of her neck as she moved her face around in the dirt. The bugs bit at the nape of her neck, making angry welts spring up almost instantly.

She didn't even bother to swat at them.

"Shit." It had been the only word she had said in the last two hours alone she imagined even her mother would be getting worried by that point. Her mouth filled dirt as she cursed herself once again. She imagined her clothes were almost unrecognizable from the dirt she had practically flung herself into. She lifted her head up only when she heard the sound of animals moving around her in the thick canopy of trees. Her wand was still clutched in her hand, although it was entirely useless in finding a way back to their campsite.

"Shit." The dirt filled her mouth as she spoke into the ground, making her splutter out at the horrid taste and texture.

"I would imagine you are laying in some."

She moved faster than she had, flinging her arm up with her wand in a defensive posture. She spit the dirt out of her mouth onto the ground. She looked around her, desperately trying to find the source of the odd sounding voice. Maybe it was a monkey. Maybe it was a tiger coming to eat her once and for all.

"It's on your face."

The voice was higher pitched than most of the normal men she had encountered. It bounced all around her, filling the almost complete silence of the jungle on all sides. She could hear footsteps as the man approached her. His feet crushed over the roots in the underbrush as he moved. She moved farther backwards as he got closer to her, stumbling slightly over an exposed bit of plant. She righted herself once more, holding her wand even further in front of her.

He was a laughable sort of man, once she got a good look at him when he stepped into the dim light in the clearing. He was tall and lanky like the trees that surrounded them. He was tanned from obvious time spent in the sun. He wore a set of mismatched shoes coupled with a flamboyantly green set of traveling wizards robes that fitted him rather poorly. He had a wand, thankfully, that was currently lighting up the ground beneath his feet. His hair, which was almost white blonde and pulled back from his face, shone even in the dim lighting. He was smiling at her, which Rory found she was oddly comfortable with.

"You have dirt on your face." He paused, stepping towards her even closer. "And on your clothes."

"How did you find me?" Rory lowered her wand only a fraction of an inch when she saw him put his wand behind his ear.

"I followed you of course." He scratched his slightly stubbly chin. "You left the most obvious track ever."

"I did that on purpose."

His laugher filled up the clearly much more pleasantly that Rory would have expected. She lowered her wand even further, becoming self-conscious of the dirt on her person for the first time that day. He was oddly handsome, if she was being perfectly honest.

"I don't think you did."

She scrubbed at her face in an attempt to get rid of the sticky dirty. It only stuck to her hands. The air was far too moist. It was making the dirt into mud almost. She ran her hands through her hair, trolling even more dirt. He let out another laugh as she did so, causing her to freeze in her actions. Her hands dropped to her sides, clutching at the loose fabric of her hiking pants. She felt the dirt squishing between her fingers and onto the light fabric.

"Why are you here?"

"Following you." He scuffed his shoes on the ground, taking a few more steps towards her.

"You aren't here to kill me are you?"

Even handsome people could be murderers, she mused to herself.

"No, I don't think so." He paused, smiling at her for the first time. "That would be a horrible first impression."

"I've had worse."

He laughed again, making an odd sort of warmth spread through her that wasn't due to the heat of the air. "So have I."

He had very blue eyes, she noticed, that lit up when he laughed. The more she looked at the mysterious man, the more she found she was enjoying the way he looked. He was obviously older than her, as evidenced by the sharper lines of his cheeks that not even Sirius Black could beat, and the full stubble that covered his mature face.

"What's your name?" He asked, finally ceasing his laughter. "Your father failed to mention it to me when he sent me after you."

"Aurora Knight." He smiled once again, revealing slight dimples in his cheeks. It made her even more comfortable to know that he was part of the other family that they were supposed to meet on their little trip. She didn't imagine her parents would be friends with murderers or something of that sort. Her mother was crazy, but she wasn't that crazy. "Although, I would much prefer it if you called me Rory."

"Would you like me to escort you back to camp before you get eaten by any Crumple-horned Snorkacks." He paused at the confused look on her face. "Nasty beasts those are. Although their horns are truly beautiful. I've always wanted one."

"I've never heard of that crumple thingy."

He smiled brightly at her once more, making her blush under the layers of dirt. "I wouldn't expect you to, Rory."

"What should I call you?" She asked suddenly, recovering from the slight haze she was feeling at his smile.

"Call me?" He paused, scratching his face once more. "By my name, of course."

"Which is?"

"Xenophilius Lovegood."

* * *

"Did you know you're bleeding, Mads?" Sirius broke their almost thirty minute long silence, looking down at the cut on her hand for the first time. He reached his hand down, grasping her own into his own. He pulled out his wand, murmuring under his breath. The skin grafted back together instantly, relieving the stinging that Maddie hadn't even noticed. She smiled up at him, scooting closer to him. "Why were you bleeding?"

"I broke a glass."

"Did the glass deserve it?"

"Or course."

They had reached the far side of the courtyard that overlooked the massive family gardens. The dead pants were completely covered in snow and ice; great icicles hanging off the branches of all of the trees. The fountains were frozen solid, sparking in the moonlight. It was beautiful and tragically sad all at the same time. The flowers were all dead. The flowers were always Maddie's favorites. The grass was crunchy instead of soft and welcoming.

"What did Regulus want?" Sirius asked suddenly, pulling her attention away from the garden and onto him.

"I honestly don't know. He said he had been thinking about something, but I don't think I will ever care to know what it was that he was thinking about."

His lips were much paler than they normally were, although his cheeks were flushed a brilliant red that contrasted with all of the dull colors around them. Snow peppered his hair, making it look almost white for a moment before it melted away from the heat in his body. He had given her his cloak, leaving him in only his dress shirt and coat. She knew he was cold. He looked cold. She moved closer to him, pulling him into a hug, wrapping the cloak around them both. If she hadn't been so cold she would have been embarrassed at the closeness of them. Ever since the incident after the quidditch match she couldn't stop herself from feeling funny at any sort of physical contact that had. It was the good sort of funny that left her smiling, but it was still funny all the same.

"You missed your sister's engagement announcement." He said, wrapping his arms around her waist in order to pull her even closer. "It's Rabastan."

"Gross." Maddie said into his chest.

"Gross." Sirius agreed in mimicking high pitched voice. "She thought so to, considered she shagged ass out of their as fast as she could."

"Promise me you won't let me marry a bloke like Rabastan." She said, rubbing her cold nose into his chest. He hissed slightly at the chilliness. "Smuggle me to Rome to become a nun."

"Is that a muggle thing?"

"Did you not pay attention in Muggle Studies last year?"

"Of course not." He said laughing. "I was paying attention to Remei Smith. She shortened her skirt that semester if you'll recall."

She knew she shouldn't have felt a pang of sadness in her chest at his words. She had been around him enough, heard enough of the rumors to understand that he was who he was. She couldn't help but wish, however, that he would pay that sort of attention to her.

She shook her head.

Those were the sort of thoughts that would only make her more depressed about the fact that Sirius black viewed her as nothing more than his closest female friend.

A consolation prize, if there ever was one.

"I didn't notice."

It seemed they had run out of things to say to each for the time being. Sirius pulled her closer, swaying slightly to the music that could still be heard faintly. Her heels clacked on the stone of the courtyard, almost making it impossible for him to keep a beat of the music. He resorted, instead, to humming to himself. It was terrible sounding and completely off tune, but it was better than nothing. He felt her smile into his chest as his humming got louder and louder, threatening to become full-fledged singing. He glanced up, keeping his gaze on the icy tree above them for a moment before he noticed something that made him freeze on the spot.

He glanced down at the top of Maddie's head.

"We're standing under mistletoe."

She looked up so violently her chin bumped into his chest. Her entire face drained of what little color the cold had left her with. Her eyes were so wide he could see every single bit of the blue color that he had come to know so well over the years. She tried to pull him backwards, out of the line of the offending plant, only to have him grip her even tighter.

"It's just a silly muggle tradition." Maddie's voice was extremely small.

"Weren't you just saying you wanted to run off and join the muggle nuns?"

"Shut up."

"Oh come on. Where's your Christmas spirit?"

He wasn't sure why he was pressing the issue so much. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that even though they were both practically frozen, her lips were still an adorable pink. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that she looked so perfect in the snow, clutching to him and wearing his cloak. Perhaps it was the thought of her marrying some other bloke, which is all he had been able to think about whenever she had mentioned it, that made his chest constrict in anger. Or perhaps it was the fact that she was Maddie and there was something about Maddie that had made him feel like it was the right thing to do.

"I've never had any. You know I hate Christmas."

"Well, maybe I should change that."

"Stop being wei…"

Before she could protest he planted his freezing lips on her own surprisingly warm ones, pulling her even closer to him.

"Maddie, I need to talk to you."

Maddie immediately stepped back from Sirius, feeling like her entire face was on fire. Her hands shook as she pulled his cloak around her. Her breath came out in thick puffs, her chest heaving like she had just run a mile, which she felt like she just had. She turned towards her sister, who had practically tackled to two of them in her desperation. Her face was frantic looking as she reached a hand forward to grab a hold of Maddie. She didn't even bother to say anything to Sirius before she was pulling Maddie away.

She kept pulling Maddie, her fingers a stark white around Sirius' cloak.

"Abs…"

Maddie wasn't exactly sure what was happening. One moment she had been kissing Sirius, a fact that she still hadn't wrapped her brain around, and the next she was being dragged down into the frozen garden. Her feet slipped and skidded as Abigail pulled her, paying very little attention to her struggling little sister behind her. It was so sudden it made her head spin.

"I just have to tell someone." She could tell Abigail was crying. "Someone else has to know."

Maddie finally managed to get a grip on herself, pulling the both of them to a sudden halt.

"Abs, what on earth is going on?"

Abigail looked like she had been kicked repeatedly. She was shaking. Her entire face was covered in smeared makeup and streak marks from the numerous tears that Maddie imagined she had shed. Her hands were practically blue, as were her arms and lips. Maddie immediately pulled off Sirius coat, sure he would mind sharing, before throwing it over her shaking sisters shoulders.

"Maddie, they're going to kill him." Abigail let out a loud sob, crumpling to the floor so suddenly Maddie couldn't stop her.

"Who's going to kill who?"

"Maddie they're going to kill Garrison." She sobbed even harder. "Oh god. They're going to kill him. They're going to kill them all."

"Abigail, you're scaring me."

"You should be scared." Her sister was truly frightening her by that point. "Maddie, they're going to kill him. Even though I love him. They're going to kill him because he is a muggle."

Maddie had thought she hallucinated Abigail professing her love for some unknown muggle man. She was certain that that wasn't what she had heard. Perhaps her head was still spinning from her kiss with Sirius. That seemed like the only logical explanation. There was no way that her sister, her proper and rule following sister, had broken the biggest rule of all time. There wasn't a feasible way that Maddie would rationalize. She couldn't see it. She couldn't understand it.

"I don't…" her voice cracked. "I don't understand."

"I overheard them in the garden. I was out walking after Mother and Father announced my engagement…"

"Because it wasn't to your muggle." Maddie couldn't stop the words from coming out of her mouth. They sounded almost hateful, which made her cringe.

"Being a muggle isn't the only thing he is." Abigail snapped, wiping her eyes angrily. "He is so much more than that."

"Who did you overhear, Abs?" Maddie asked, trying to block out the fact that her sister was in love with a man that would surely get them both killed.

"William and Father. They were talking to a large group of men, saying horrible…" She started crying again. "Saying horrible things that they were going to to-tt- to Muggle Salem."

"What did they say?" Maddie asked, suddenly remembering the muggle women who had been murdered. "Abigail, what did they say they were going to do?"

"Go listen for yourself." Abigail was in absolute hysterics. "They are still there."

Maddie attempted to lift her sister into a proper standing position. Abigail swayed dangerously, causing Maddie to have to grip her even tighter to maintain her balance. She wished, rather vehemently, that she was back kissing Sirius. It had been so nice compared to what she had just heard. She imagined anything would be nicer. Abigail was still crying like a child by the time Maddie managed to get her into a standing position. She swayed dangerously, but remained standing.

"Go tell Sirius what you just old me and then both of you go to my room." Maddie instructed, fastening Sirius' cloak tightly around Abigail's shoulders. "Do not talk to anybody but him. Go straight there. Pretend to be sick if you have to. Just…" She paused. "Just stay there until I come back."

"You aren't really going to listen in?"

"I suppose I have to." Maddie said stepping away from her sister and moving in the direction Abigail had indicated.

Her kiss with Sirius was, regretfully, at the back of her mind at that point, having been replaced with horrible, gut-wrenching, stifling panic and fear.

* * *

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	15. Chapter 15

_Patience and time do more than strength and passion. _

_-Jean de La Fontaine_

* * *

_December 24, 1975_

The garden was silent with the exception of the sound of Maddie's heels clacking along the ground as she made her way towards the small courtyard in the far east side. It seemed colder, if that was possible, as she moved. She missed the coat that Sirius had given her so much it hurt. She pulled her arms across her front, rubbing her hands up and down in an attempt to warm up her blood. She knew it would not work. She was cold from the inside out. Warming up the cold feelings coursing through her would be impossible.

She shouldn't have ever even offered to spy on her family in the first place. It was a foolish notion fueled by the foolishness of her friends and their zealous enthusiasm for change.

Voices wafted over the wind the closer she got, making her blood turn to ice. They were laughing, drunkenly and roguishly, at something she was certain she should be grateful she had not heard. It was probably something she wouldn't be able to forget very easily. She recognized her father, brother, and a few of her uncles amongst the menagerie of voices.

When she knew she was within a hundred years she bent down low over her feet, slipping them out of her heels in a mournful fashion. The moment her feet touched the ground she had to bite her hand from crying out at the appalling feeling of the ice on the bottoms of her feet. She placed her shoes gingerly on the ground, hidden from view, before she straightened herself up into a fully standing position. Her toes dug into the snow and ice unintentionally, gripping and squeezing in an attempt to settle her nerves.

James, and Sirius for that matter, owed her a lifetime of gratitude and Pumpkin Pasties for what she was about to do.

Maddie's face was of perpetual displeasure and pain as she picked her way over the ice. She was as unhappy as she had ever been, hurrying through the gardens like she was some sort of snow loving homeless person with no shoes on her feet and wrinkles in her dress.

The hedge surrounded courtyard was glowing. It had a sort of yellowish crown above the magically modified green hedges. The winter flowers lit up like fire under the light from the numerous wizards' wands. Their voices were even louder, allowing Maddie to hear individual words as she picked her way around to an open spot to allow her to listen in. She could no longer feel her feet as she squeezed herself into a crevice of the bushes, completely hidden from their sight. Her dress brushed up against the leaves and branches, tearing in a few places. She paid little mind to the tearing of the fabric, choosing instead to turn her attention towards the raucous conversation happening just on the other side.

"Never seen a girl run so fast from you Rabastan." The voice was loud and harsh to Maddie's ears, making her insides squirm involuntarily. "Imagine what she'll be like on your wedding night."

"Virgins always squirm a little bit." A second voice spoke up. "S'what makes them so exciting."

"Mind your mouth. That is my daughter you are speaking about."

Maddie knew that was her father from the moment he began to speak. He sounded harsh, colder than the snow beneath her frozen feet, and cruel. She pushed herself into the crevice even further, wishing for nothing more than to be back in her room, sitting by the fire with Sirius next to her. She wanted him to be poking fun at the color of her dress, or reading her Christmas stories in an attempt to shove some spirit into her, or to be simply sitting silently besides her, sipping on some warmed up spiced butterbeer. She wished to be anywhere else but where she was.

"That daughter of yours seems a bit willful, wouldn't you say?"

Her father made a scoffing sound in the back of his throat. "Abigail?"

"The younger one." The voice said, earning a few laughs from the men around him. "Always causing trouble wherever she goes, as I understand it."

Her father made another noise, this one much angrier than the first. Maddie felt mortified, to say the least, that all of them were discussing her in such a manner. Blood rushed to her face, taking some of the chill away, as she listened in. She did not like to hear them talking about her in general, let alone in a way that painted her as a troublemaker that caused problems wherever she went. She hadn't considered herself to be a troublemaker. In general, when compared to her friends, she felt as if she was downright well-behaved and saintly. Or at least, that's what she liked to think about herself whenever she had the time to ponder it.

"I would say she isn't as bad as your son, Orion. It would not surprise me to learn that he had gotten some girl pregnant, or was associating with muggles. The rumors of your son are far worse and far more offensive than the rumors of my daughter. You would do well to remember that."

A man, who Maddie assumed was Orion, scoffed audibly. "A woman who causes trouble is far worse than a man who causes trouble."

"They are both children undeserving of the labels both of you have so unjustly given them."

It was William who spoke, which Maddie found to be rather comical. She had to fight the urge to laugh out loud at the fact that her brother was calling her a child when he himself acted about as mature as a fourteen year old boy who was just given a small amount of power that he didn't deserve or know how to handle.

"Regardless of how we label them, we cannot allow them, or anyone else for that matter, to become a liability." That voice was sniveling, creeping, and so light it was hard for Maddie to hear him. It sent involuntary shivers down her spine, forcing her to lean into the hedges even further in an attempt to listen to the rest of his words. Branches smashed into her hips, causing little prickling marks of blood to spring up underneath her now completely ruined dress. "We are getting closer and closer to the time in which we were told to act."

"I assure you, sir, that none of my children will become a liability." Philip snapped. "I cannot speak for the families and relations of others."

"Mind your tone, Steele." Orion sounded as if he wanted to hit Maddie's father. She wasn't sure if she would appreciate him for it or not, if it were to happen. "We all remember the story of your blood traitor sister."

Maddie paled at the mention of her Aunt Eleanor. She had died, or had been killed, five years before Maddie had been born. Her father never liked to talk about her and her mother seemed to know very little about the situation, but Maddie had gathered all the information she would need to know over the years from others outside of her family. Eleanor had run of with some muggle, having gotten pregnant at the age of eighteen. It was the same thing Abigail was doing and Maddie was afraid it was the same thing that would get Abigail killed. The thought sent another chill through her body, settling in her stomach uncomfortably.

The thought made her physically ill to think about.

"I am not the one who should watch their tone, Orion. I would not speak to me in such a manner if you wish for the agreement we have already made to remain intact. It would be a great embarrassment to your family if it were to disappear."

"I do not take kindly to threats."

"Gentlemen, we have little time for the quarrels and arguments about lesser things." It was the creeping man who interrupted them. Maddie pressed herself into the bushes even further, peeling some of the leaves back so that she could make out the faces and outlines of the men to match them to their voices. "Have you planned for the day?"

"We will strike after the wedding." Philip said simply. Maddie could just barely see his outline through the leaves, pacing back and forth in front of what had to be twenty men all milling about. They were all looking at her father, eyes calculating and observing. Some of them gripped drinks in their hands; others kept their arms crossed firmly in front of their lavishly clad chests. "That will fall directly after all of the…" He paused, glancing around at the group for a small moment. "The newer recruits are sworn and trusted to be amongst us."

"So you are intending to continue with the plan?"

Philip flinched at the disbelieving tone in the creeping man's voice. "Why would we not continue?"

The creeping man, a stooped little blip of a person with far too much body hair for a person of his stature, did not cower at the look on Philip's face. He merely nodded his head once. The men around him watched them for a moment, eyeing them like a fight was liable to break out at even the smallest sort of thing.

"It all seems rather bold for such an early and opening statement."

"I am sure I do not follow your meaning." Philip's face became reddened with rage.

The creeping man shook out his shoulders, a queer sort of smile making its way onto his ragged face. "It is simple, I would think. You are talking about destroying and entire muggle city."

"Those muggles are worth nothing." Philip snapped, a vein in his neck popping out dangerously.

"It is not their worth I am concerned about, for we all know it is very little." He paused, taking a sip out of the steaming firewhiskey in his hand. "I am more concerned about the logistics of this whole endeavor."

"Those are none of your concern." Philip snapped, his hands forming fists at his sides.

"I fail to see your reasoning, Steele."

"Muggle Salem," He spit the words out like they were poison. "Will be gone by the end of next summer. I can assure you of that."

The men in the small courtyard shifted on their feet, shooting furtive looks at the two quarreling men. Some of them moved closer to each other, thick arms crossed over their chests, wands drawn out as some sort of safety net. Some of them drew their fancy fur lined cloaks closer to their necks, covering themselves up against the never ending cold that seemed to have gotten colder as the conversation and the night wore on. Maddie could see her brother step closer to her father, placing a tentative hand on his shoulder only to have it be thrown off almost instantly.

"It is not a little matter that you can brush away like you brush away all the whores you have taken over the years." Maddie felt even sicker. "Destroying an all muggle city will attack not only the attention of those bumbling idiots at the Ministry of Magic, but that of the muggle authorities as well."

"We will squash them like bugs." Philip snapped, earning a few odd glances from the men around them. "You accuse me of being afraid of muggles? You insult me."

"Your arrogance blinds you." The creeping man snapped, abandoning his firewhiskey on one of the stone benches that were around them. "It is too early for your foolhardy plan. We must wait until we receive the orders; we must wait until our power is evident. He will not be pleased if you attempt this and fail in his name."

"You would have me wait until all of us are grey and shriveled into nothing."

"I would have you wait until you are no longer idiotic enough to ruin what we are working for." The creeping man stood up from his spot, looking around at all those present. He looked at Philip Steele for a particularly long time before he opened his yellow stained mouth again. "Muggle Salem will fall; it is just a simple matter of patience and timing."

* * *

Sirius had never been particularly good with crying women. He imagined it stemmed from the time he accidentally walked in on his mother crying when he was about eight years old. He hadn't been aware, at the time, that his mother actually possessed the ability to cry. he had thought those sort of emotions were reserved for more human like women. He had been wrong, obviously, resulting in the appallingly alarming and scarring experience of attempting to comfort his mother. He had tried, only to be rejected with a solid smack to the face. He never learned why she had been crying, and he had never seemed to care. He had never bothered with crying women since then unless it was Maddie.

Maddie was an ugly crier, he had come to notice, with a tendency towards leaking out of her nose. It was messy and uncomfortable for him, but he had learned long ago that Maddie did not like to cry any more than he liked to see her cry. It made him uncomfortable all the way down to his core. It made his stomach squirm and his head ache to see her so out of sorts. He had not expected to come to find that when Abigail cried she looked startlingly similar to Maddie in every way, shape, and form.

He carried Abigail up to Maddie's room, ignoring the alarmed looks he got from all those around him. He could only imagine the words that they would be saying about him and the scandal he was currently in the process of causing once he was completely out of ear shot. Or still in it. Purebloods were not known for their subtlety when it came to the latest piece of gossip.

Abigail cried all the way up to Maddie's room and continued to cry once Sirius had deposited her onto Maddie's large, lavishly cushioned bed. She curled herself into the blankets like a small child, paying no mind to the fact that her dress was riding up dangerously high on her long legs. Sirius was tempted to look for a moment, before he remembered that he had literally just kissed his best friend not five minutes before. It almost seemed like an insult to Maddie, even if it had meant nothing. Besides, he may have liked the female gender, but he had never considered himself one to take advantage. And in Abigail's state, it would not be considered anything but that.

Sirius pulled one of the many blankets covering the bed over Abigail's trembling shoulders, taking note of the fact that she was currently staining them with the snot flowing freely from her nose. She paid no mind to his actions, choosing instead to curl in upon herself even further, if that was possible. She looked smaller than a child, smaller than a mouse on the huge bed.

Sirius glanced around the room, all the while keeping his ears trained onto Abigail as she cried. He imagined she wouldn't want to talk. He imagined he wouldn't have wanted to either if he had been hiding a muggle lover from his family.

It seemed odd to him that in all of the years he had known Maddie, he had never once visited her room. It had never been a line they crossed, never a line she had been willing to cross. Now that he was in there, he found himself cursing the fact that he had not seen it sooner. It was completely and totally Maddie in every single way imaginable. The walls were painted in a deep purple color, with silver and black accents adorning the walls and dappling all the furniture. The best sheets and blankets covered her large bed. Everything about it was the finest. He could see her closet door hanging open slightly, giving him the smallest of views of her massive amount of clothes.

He moved towards her closet, shooting a quick glance at Abigail. He opened the door completely, feeling his face crack into a smile when he saw how Maddie had decorated the other side of the door that was out of sight. It was covered in pictures; pictures of him and her smiling next to the lake at Hogwarts, pictures of her and Rory wearing odd muggle costumes that looked like overgrown lizards, pictures of the Marauders making silly faces at each other, pictures of Lily with her face pressed into a book after falling asleep studying. There were pictures of him that he had no recollection of them ever being taken. He ran his fingers over the edges, a large smile on his face as he looked at all them. They were magnificent.

Maddie had never told him she had all of those pictures. He wasn't sure if she had even told Rory.

His fingers traced the lines Maddie's face in one of the less active moving pictures. It was a picture of the two of them from what he was sure was fourth year. They were standing in the snow, arms wrapped around each other in an attempt to keep warm. Her nose was red and raw in the picture, as was his. He didn't bother to look at himself, however. All he could see was the look on her face. She was smiling, laughing almost, as she looked up at him. He wasn't sure who had taken the picture. Sirius himself hadn't even been aware of its existence.

Before he knew what he was doing, he ripped the picture down, shoving it into his pocket. He quickly moved out of the closet before the weeping Abigail would notice him, closing the door behind him with a silent snap.

Abigail had stopped crying, choosing instead to resort to painful sounding dry heaves. There was a trail of spittle from her mouth that she seemed not to care about. Her eyes were painfully red and tired looking as she snuffled into the now completely disgusting blanket.

He had barely made a move towards her when the door to Maddie's room was slamming open loud enough to startle both of them.

Maddie walked in, hands clenched at her side so tightly they had lost all color. She was barefoot and cut in odd places. She had sticks in her now completely destroyed hair as well as tears in her dress that Sirius was positive hadn't been there when she had left him with Abigail. Her chest was heaving so heavily, Sirius thought she was liable to stop breathing from the strain on her lungs. There were small blood stains on her dress, making him immediately cross the room towards her, the picture theft completely and utterly forgotten.

"Maddie?" Sirius placed a hand on her shaking shoulder, hating how cold it felt to the touch. She shrugged it off immediately, storming over to her closet without so much as a word to either of them. She slammed the door behind her.

Sirius stared at the door, an odd look of confusion mixed with alarm, waiting for her to come back out. It took her a solid ten minutes before she came back out, wearing nothing but a pair of thick grey leggings and a ratty t-shirt that Sirius had the inkling belonged to him at one point or another.

Her face looked murderous as she marched over to Abigail, completely ignoring Sirius as she went. "When were you planning on telling me about you little muggle? Were you just going to wait for Rory to spill the beans?"

Sirius did not miss the way she spat Rory's name like it physically pained her.

Abigail sat up, not bothering to wipe the snot and spit from her face. "What?"

"How could you be so damn stupid, Abigail?" Sirius did not like the side of Maddie that was currently on display. He shifted on his feet, folding his arms over his chest as he watched the two sisters glaring at each other. "How did you think it would end?"

"I didn't think it would end."

"You're not naïve enough to actually believe that." Maddie snarled, throwing herself onto one of the thick black armchairs by the window. "A muggle, Abigail. A bleeding muggle."

"Do not say it like it is some sort of disease that spreads."

Maddie ignored her, crossing her arms over her chest as she glared out the window. Sirius could hear the party going on beneath their feet. The people were completely oblivious to the tension over their heads. He almost envied them. He feared, which he did not admit to often, what Maddie had heard in the garden to make her so upset and angry at her sister and everyone else around her. She truly looked livid beyond words.

"I went and listened, like you told me to." Maddie said, paying little mind to her sister's heavy breathing. "I heard what they were talking about."

"They're going to kill him." Abigail wailed suddenly, almost involuntarily it seemed to Sirius.

"Him and everyone else in Muggle Salem." Sirius thought he must have heard her wrong. There was no other explanation for the words coming out of her mouth. "I heard them say it like it was nothing, like they were talking about stomping on a few eggs."

By that point, Sirius had to interfere. "Maddie, you don't mean to say that they are…"

"They're planning on turning Muggle Salem into fully Magical Salem. They're planning on killing all of the muggles at the end of next summer."

"That is impossible madness." Sirius said, moving to sit on the bed next to Abigail. "They cannot think they will succeed with something like that?"

"I do not know what they think." Maddie said, dropping her face into her hands.

"Maddie, you can't let them kill him."

"Abigail, this is about more than just one muggle. They're talking about an entire city worth." Sirius said, running his hands through his hair. "They're talking about killing hundreds and hundreds of innocent people like it is nothing."

"What would you want me to do, Abigail? March down to father and tell him that he isn't allowed to do it? Maybe I could just tell the whole damn party that you said it wasn't allowed to happen. Is that what you would have me do?" Maddie sounded slightly insane as she spoke into her hands harshly. Sirius could see tears squeezing out from in between her fingers. "Do you think I can just snap my fingers and make sure that none of this is happening?"

"I don't know what to do."

And for the first time in his life, Sirius felt that he was completely out of options and ideas. He didn't know what to do, and it scared him like nothing ever had before.


	16. Chapter 16

_Time brings all things to pass. _

_-Aeschylus_

* * *

_December 30, 1975  
_

Number 12, Grimmauld Place was always much smaller than Maddie imagined it to be in her mind. She had visited it many times in her life, yet every single time she saw it it always surprised her at how small it truly was. It was immaculately kept from both the inside and out, with its year round silver flowers and ornately decorated glass windows. While smaller than most family estates, Maddie knew that it made up for it's lack of size with a grandness that most other families could only dream of. Maddie had always thought it was a great pity that the muggles who lived next door to the Blacks couldn't see it. She imagined they would have liked the flowers. The same feelings would not be spared for those who lived inside, however. She was rather thankful that the Blacks kept themselves out of sight of the muggles. Maddie could only begin to imagine the situations that would arise if the situation had been otherwise.

As uncomfortable as it was to be trapped in Grimmauld Place, Maddie was happy it wasn't the alternative. As soon as she had heard word of her sister loving a muggle, she couldn't really bring herself to be as comfortable, or as comfortable as she could be, as she had been before. The three days after the party until Maddie left to stay with the Blacks it was all she could do to avoid her sister and keep her head down around the rest of her family. The sight of her brother made her angry, her father made her feel slightly nauseous, her mother made her feel suddenly dimwitted, and her sister made her feel helpless.

She dreamed about Muggle Salem every singe night. She saw it burning in front of her eyes. She couldn't get the images out of her mind. They haunted her every moment of every day.

She shook her head, trying to distract herself from her thoughts.

Maddie sank into her guest bed, willing her stomach to stop squirming if even for a moment. She had felt sick for the past six days and she didn't imagine it would stop any time soon. She pulled a blanket up over her head, shutting out all of the bright light in the room. The pain in her head was throbbing.

"I still think we should tell James. Or Rory, maybe"

Maddie did not bother to look out from underneath the blanket. Sirius had been saying that for the past hour and he still had not received a different response from her.

"We can't risk it in a letter." Maddie spoke against the soft fabric of the blanket, tasting the fibers that got into her mouth. The dust that covered the room, giving it the perpetual musty smell that she had come to be far too familiar with. It filled her nose until it threatened to make her gag and cough. "There is too much of a chance of it being read by someone that isn't James."

She did not mention that she had very little desire to have anything to do with Aurora Knight at the moment. They had never had a true fight in all of the years they had been friends until that moment. Of course, Rory did not know how furious Maddie was at her, but it was all the same. Maddie could not even think about Rory and the secrets she had kept about Abigail without wanting to scream at the nearest object that she passed.

"So we should just sit here and do nothing?"

Maddie let out a loud long suffering sigh, smashing the blanket into her face even further. Her head throbbed to the point she thought it might explode if Sirius asked her the same question once more. He had asked more times than she could count.

"I do not know what you expect me to do." Maddie said snappishly, feeling as if she was talking to a child with the amount of times she had had to repeat herself.

"You don't have to be nasty." Sirius snapped, voice clearly laced with annoyance at her lack of a different response. "After all, it was you who heard all the terrible things. You heard what they were planning for Muggle Salem. I don't know how you can just sit there and not want to do something."

He had said that four times, she was certain.

"Sirius, you're annoying me."

Sirius let out a loud scoff. She heard him shift in his seat for a moment before loud footsteps were heard coming towards her. She gripped the blanket tighter to her body, knowing full well what he was about to do. His hands grabbed at the blanket for a moment, attempting to wrench it off her body, before he finally yanked it clean off her. He threw it across the room before stomping back to his seat by the window, a deep scowl marring his face. She pushed herself up into a sitting position; her arms crossed over her chest in what she hoped would be an intimidating gesture. They stared at each other for a moment, neither one willing to break the silence first.

"I am sorry my sense of responsibility is annoying you."

"It's only a little bit until we're back at school." Maddie said finally, cringing inwardly at the fact that she had practically yelled at him. "We can tell Dumbledore everything we heard then. I think it would be unwise to try and let other people know right now, considering your mother is probably crazy enough to screen all of our postage before we even get it."

Sirius did not stop glaring at her.

"Come on." Maddie snapped, finally lifting herself off her borrowed bed. "I don't know what more you expect us to be able to do."

"Something more than just sitting here while those…" Sirius seemed to struggle for words for a moment, brow furrowing low over his grey eyes. "Those monsters plan to kill off an entire town of people."

"In case you haven't notice, Sirius, we are currently staying with some of those monsters." Maddie moved across the room, stopping to stand in front of him tentatively. He glanced up at her for a moment before he returned his angry stare to the floor. "I wish there was something we could do, but let's be honest for a moment. We're teenagers that can't even manage to match our socks without a little bit of help. What can we do besides sit here?"

Sirius stood up suddenly; face red with what she knew was anger. She stepped back from him, feeling wary of him for the first time in her entire life. She had never seen him look so angry with her before, never seen him look so disgusted by her.

"I never took you for one who didn't care about the lives of others." Sirius snapped, sounding so unlike himself it made her insides squirm. "We should so something besides act like it isn't our problem."

"I never…" Maddie trailed off, losing all the words she had planned to say at the hateful look on his face. "I never said I didn't care."

"You didn't have to Maddie." He moved towards the door with three large steps, fists clenched at his sides. Maddie vaulted after him, grabbing a hold of his arm before he could walk further away from her than he already had. He shook of her hand almost instantly, but stopped moving towards the door. He did not turn to face her, choosing instead to keep his gaze firmly planted on the deep mahogany door. "Mads, why aren't you acting like this is a big deal? Why are you acting like you..."

"Do you want me to start bursting into tears?" Maddie removed her hand from his arm, cutting his tirade off. "I could punch things if that would make it more plain how much this whole thing is scaring me. Would you rather I march right up to your Mother and Father and call them out for being pieces of shit? I can do that if you want. I can do that if it would make you happier."

Sirius did not turn to look at her. She noticed that he had stopped breathing so heavily. She took that as a good sign. She moved slightly closer to him, placing her trembling hand on his shoulder.

"I didn't know what to do when Abigail told me, and I certainly don't know what to do now."

There was a long silence that hung in the room, filling it up until it was almost impossible for Maddie to keep breathing. She pulled her hand back from his back, resting it on top of her stomach in an attempt to get it to stop squirming. Sirius kept his gaze on the door for a solid ten minutes before he finally turned around to look her full on in the face. He did not smile at her, nor did he make a move towards her as she half expected him to. He folded his long arms over his chest, fingers still digging into his palms in anger and frustration. His eyes were clouded and distant, making Maddie take an involuntary step back. She did not like the look that was in his eyes, nor did she imagine she would like what he was about to say to her.

"You have to have a desire to do something? Anything?" He was looking at her as if he was seeing her for the first time in ages. She could not think of a way to respond to him, resulting in a long silence. When she did not answer him his face grew even angrier. "You are more like your family than I had always figured if that is the case, Maddie."

"Don't."

"Don't what?" Sirius moved towards the door once again, a full out glare on his face. "Don't point out that you are acting as if it is okay to sit here and do nothing. Don't hold you accountable for the fact that you are the one who agreed to do something about your terrible family in the first place. Should I just not point out that you have been acting like a spoiled little brat thinking of nothing but yourself and how this whole thing affects you for the last four days?"

"Please stop." Maddie stepped back from him even further, feeling hot tears slipping down her cheeks at the horrible look on his face. "You've misunderstood…"

"Madeleine!" Regulus Black had never been one to be known for his sense of timing. Although, given the current feeling in the room, Maddie could not help but appreciate his sudden and starling interruption. She wiped off the tears from her face, hurriedly attempting to look as if she and Sirius had not just be having what was arguably one of the biggest fights they had ever had. Regulus sauntered into her room. He did not bother to knock, choosing instead to announce his presence by the shouting of her name. She was so thankful for his interruption she did not even mind that he had used her full name.

"Mother has been looking for you. She says she wants to work on your etiquette or some useless thing or another." He said, sitting himself down on her bed. Sirius shot Regulus the darkest look he could muster before turning on his heel and stalking out of the room, glaring at everything and anything as he went. The remaining two watched him go, each with vastly different expression.

"He seems a bit angry today." Regulus lightly, voice laced with amusement. "Did he make you cry, or was it just because you missed me so much?"

"The dust in this room made my eyes water."

"Hm." Regulus reached out his arm, pulling Maddie away from her spot staring at the door. "Let's just pretend like that wasn't a complete lie for a moment."

Maddie shook herself out of his grasp. "What do you want? Your mother could have just sent a house elf."

Regulus feigned hurt at the harshness of her voice. "Why do I always have to have an ulterior motive? I simply wanted the pleasure of your company."

"Bull shit."

"You would know all about that, now wouldn't you?"

Maddie couldn't stop herself from grimacing at his insufferableness. She wanted to rip her hair out in sheer frustration. She wanted to kick him, punch him, and slap him until he managed to shut his fat mouth. First Sirius, now Regulus. She would have much rather Sirius stay with her, even if he was going to yell at her and insult her even more. She didn't think he had meant any of it. She told herself that to make the terrible ache decrease. She felt the words he had said stinging her all the way down to her core. He made her feel ashamed. He made her feel like a blundering child asking for things that she didn't have a right to be asking for.

"While I normally try to avoid dealing with female feelings, I can't help but wonder, and damn me for my insatiable curiosity," He made himself more comfortable on her bed. "What did he say?"

"That is none of your business."

Regulus let out a small laugh. "So it was him? This wouldn't be a problem if you would just chose to spend your time with me instead. I think it will be easier in the long run."

"Go crawl back under rock you came from." Maddie snapped, feeling her spite and hate towards Regulus filling her up until it spilled out. She had half a mind to ask him what he meant about the long run before she saw the leering look on his face as he moved towards her. He placed a hand on her shoulder for a moment before she slapped it away.

"We're already there, love." Regulus gestured around the room with a large smirk on his face. "Can't you see it?"

* * *

Sirius was beyond livid. He had never felt so angry in his entire life. He imagined her face and it filled him with even more anger and hatred; just imagining her relaxed nature made him want to hit something. He had never imagined himself to be the more caring of the two of them, but now that he could see she felt inclined to do nothing about what was about to happen in Muggle Salem, he felt like he was mistaken about her all along.

Sirius slammed his door shut behind him, kicking the nearest piece of furniture as he went. His wall shook with the force in which he slammed the door shut. He knew that Maddie, and his entire house as well, had heard the sound of it. He hoped Maddie had heard it. He hoped she felt it all the way down to her core. Maybe then it would wake her up a little bit; make her realize how she was acting. Regulus was no doubt saying something which he thought was terribly clever to her at that very moment. The nasty little git.

He threw himself onto his bed, kicking off his shoes in the angriest motion he could muster.

He couldn't fathom how she could not see that she was acting just like her family. Maddie was being cowardly. All he had heard her say was things that centered around her, and sometimes him, and her safety. She had been stuttering in everything she said. She had talked in circles. She had even once said she wished for nothing more than a trip to the beach in which she would not want to return from. He had heard her crying in her room when she thought no one could hear her.

"Damn Steeles." He spat out into his room, punching his pillow into a better position under his head. "Damn Maddie and her damn…" He trailed off, fixing his angry stare on one of the posters on his wall.

It had always been one of his favorites. It was a blonde woman, for which he had always had a weakness for, straddling a motor cycle wearing nothing but a pair of leather shorts and a red bra that barely covered her. It had been a joint gift from James and Remus on his fifteen birthday. He eyed it for a moment, before he found that even her lack of clothes couldn't distract him from his anger at his best friend.

He stared at the poster until the sun had completely disappeared for the night.

He stared at it until his eyes hurt.

He had half fallen asleep when the door to his room creaked open. He didn't bother to glance over at it, knowing full well that it was Maddie. She was the only one who even bothered to come to his room. The rest of his family hated it, which had been his goal the entire time. He couldn't care less if they never decided to talk to him, look at him, or even think of him ever again.

"Sirius?"

He glanced over at her, eyebrows raised.

"Can I come in?" She was wearing one of his old shirts over a pair of ratty shorts that had seen better days. Her feet were covered in a pair of mismatched socks, a gift from Rory he assumed. He briefly remembered her words from earlier about neither of them being able to match their socks without help. He had to physically force himself not to smile as he looked at her little feet. "I mea…"

"Come in, Mads." Sirius said, shifting over in his bed to allow her the spot next to him. He felt the bed sag under her weight as she attempted to get comfortable. It was awkward for a long moment, before he finally took pity on her. He moved his arm out from underneath the pillow, wrapping it around her shoulders. Despite his anger, he couldn't stop himself from pulling her closer. He couldn't deny, to even himself, that he couldn't really help it.

"I want to explain something to you, before you start calling me even more vile names." She said in the darkness.

He poked her side when she did not continue, urging her to finish before he recalled all the nasty things he had been thinking about her.

"I am not uncaring about what is going around us." She sounded very young all of a sudden, forcing Sirius to peer over at her. He could see the outline of her nose and mouth in the darkness, but little more than that. "I had thought you knew me better than to think that about me, but apparently I was wrong."

"Mads…"

"I am scared. I do not think you can fault me for that. I worry for Abigail, and her love. I worry for you and all those I hold close to me. I feel like I have been terribly selfish, but I can't help but think that I never should have listened in the first place. I feel obligated to do something now, like I am responsible in a way for their fate, and I am completely at a loss for what to do."

Sirius did not know how to respond to her. He kept silent instead, listening to the sound of her accelerated breathing.

"How do you stop them? How can we, of all people, be expected to do something so impossible?"

"There are a lot of things that are impossible that have been accomplished."

"They have been accomplished by greater people than me." Maddie said so quietly Sirius was almost sure he hadn't heard her properly. She turned on her side, burying her cold nose into his neck. He felt moisture dripping from her eyes. Her tears seeped into his shirt, making it uncomfortably moist against his skin. She gripped his t-shirt in her hands, pulling herself closer in the bed. Her legs wrapped themselves around one of his, instantly making him grow hot at the sudden contact.

"We can stop them together." He said, hesitantly running a finger along one of her messy curls. He half expected her to swat his hand away. "I mean, you didn't think I was going to let you figure this out all on your own did you?"

"How?"

"We get help." Sirius pulled her closer. "We get help from everybody we can. Dumbledore will listen to us. How could he ignore something like that? James' mum and dad are Aurors. They won't ignore me. They love me."

"At least somebody's parents love you." Maddie mumbled quietly, fingers flexing over his shirt involuntarily. "You aren't a total lost cause."

"Not totally."

Silence filled the dark room once again. Maddie kept her face pressed into his neck, breathing evenly. His familiar smell filled up her senses, lulling her into an almost lethargic state. Her mind clouded up as she laid there with him. She had imagined what it would feel like to be so close to him only once in her life. She had thought it was odd at the time to be having a dream that involved her best friend in such an odd manner. She hadn't been able to make eye contact with him for a week after the incident. Maddie almost laughed at her silly foolishness. Lying next to him was exactly as she had imagined it that one time. He was warmer than her. His arms folded around her in a manner that she deemed to be truly perfect. She had to stop herself multiple times from pushing herself into his side further.

"This is quite scandalous you know." Sirius said suddenly, breaking the silence. His deep voice broke Maddie out of her thought, forcing her to look over at his profile in abysmal lighting from the moon.

"For me maybe. For you I would imagine this is a common occurrence."

Sirius let out a loud bark like laughter. "You wound me."

"I'm sure."

He moved suddenly, rolling himself over to pull her closer to him. Maddie felt her entire body go rigid as he attempted to curl himself around her. His arms wrapped around her middle as his face buried itself in the mass of hair at the nape of her neck.

Maddie was certain she had lost the ability to breathe.

"I am sorry for saying you were like your family." Sirius said into her neck, arms pulling her even closer until she was flush up against him.

Maddie thought for a moment, thinking about her words carefully. "You were right, I think. I was being selfish. I couldn't help but think about all of the bad things that were going to happen to me and everyone around me. I should have been thinking about those muggles. They are the ones that are in real danger. Not you or me. We have to do something. I don't think there is another option, Sirius. I am truly sorry for acting like there was."

She fell into silence once more.

"It seems weird doesn't it?"

"What does?" Maddie asked, leaning back to peer over his shoulder at his outline.

"I've never imagined myself to be lying with you, planning the best way to go about preventing a war and a massacre." He spoke into her shoulder, lips pressing into the material of her shirt. He was making it hard for her to even focus on anything with how close he was to her. "Well, maybe I've imagined the bed part once or twice."

He laughed loudly at her as she attempted to squirm away from him. His arms tightened around her middle, keeping her firmly planted in her spot despite her best efforts.

"You just made it weird."

"Oh come off it. I already managed to kiss you once, who's to say I won't get to do it again?"

Maddie felt her entire body heat up in a blush. "Me. I'm to say that it won't happen again."

Sirius hummed deep within in his chest. She felt his arms scrubbing around for a moment before she was being turned around to face him. She could just see the faint outline of his wide smile in the darkness. Her stomach squirmed with unease. One of his hands moved to her lower back, pulling her by her waist closer to him, while the other hand snaked around to grasp the back of her neck.

"What are you doing?" Maddie asked, quietly, feeling liable to burst into flames at any moment.

"I am thinking about kissing you again…"

"Why?" Maddie blurted out, cursing herself for how high her voice had suddenly gotten.

"Why are you trying to ruin the moment?" Sirius asked, laughter lacing every word he spoke to her.

"I am not trying to ruin the moment. I am just simply wondering why you would want to kiss me again. I mean I don't know why you would ever want to kiss me in the first place, let alone a second time. I mean at a time like this, all the stuff that is going on. All the stuff that is about to happen. I'm no…"

She did not have time to finish her sentence before he pulled her to him, mouth smothering hers completely. It was nothing like the first kiss they had shared. That one had been odd and awkward. That one had felt weird and almost forced. That one had felt like it shouldn't have happened. This one felt like the exact opposite. To Maddie it felt like the exact sort of thing she had been waiting for for far longer than she cared to admit to even herself. She pushed herself closer to him, mouth working feverishly against his. She felt him smile into her as his hands snaked themselves lower on her, pulling her hips into his in a quick, well-practiced motion.

His teeth worked her bottom lip for the briefest of moments, causing her to gasp out loud in pleasure, before they were replaced with the smallest amount of his tongue flicking at her mouth with vigor.

Before she could even process what was happening he had rolled her over so that he was on top of her, mouth moving to work up and down her neck and collarbone. The only sound in the room was both of their breathing, mixing together in raged bursts. His lips were like fire on her skin, leaving behind a trail everywhere they dared to venture. She had heard rumors about him, but she had never imagined it to be as intense as it was. She could hardly breathe; hardly feel anything but his lips and his wandering hands. She, feeling oddly bold, lifted her hips up, attempting to bring herself closer to him in every possible way. He had lost his shirt somehow, making Maddie feel even warmer as her hands scraped across his bare chest.

She did not even know she was capable of such passion when she wrapped her legs around his waist, earning a loud moan from him.

This was Sirius Black. This was her best friend that she was currently snogging the life out of. She should have been mortified at her actions. She wasn't, however. She wanted nothing more than to be closer to him. She hadn't wanted anything more than that for a long time. He was something to her that she couldn't quite categorize. He was Sirius Black. That was the only thing she could think to place with him. Nothing else seemed to fit in her blurred mind.

It wasn't until she felt his hand moving along her stomach and up into her shirt that she managed to grab a hold of her senses. She immediately pushed him off her, hearing him hit the floor with a loud thud. She immediately scrambled over to the side.

"Oh god, are you alright?" She asked, leaning over the side of the bed to peer down at him. Her breathing was ragged and heavy through her nose and swollen lips. He kept his gaze on the floor for a moment before he looked up at her, a wolfish grin spread across his face.

"I don't think I've ever been better, Mads."

She sat back on her backside, fixing the shorts that Sirius had messed up with his hands. She ran a hand through her hair, feeling thoroughly embarrassed about what had just happened. She avoided eye contact with him at all costs, choosing instead to look around the room at all of the posters of women that lined his walls. Normally she would have minded how scantily clad they were. It seemed a bit disrespectful in her mind. She didn't care this time, however, as they gave her something to look at that wasn't the disheveled looking Sirius Black.

Sirius stood up, making to move towards her once again eyes clouded with lust, right when the door to his room banged open, halting him in his spot as a look of horror made its way onto his face.

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**So... yeah. I would really love to start getting a few more reviews. I just really love hearing what you guys think! Anywho, sorry for the cliffie, but something major plot-wise is about to happen. So, Please Please Please stay tuned. Things are about to speed up exponentially from this point out so hold on and get ready!**

**As always, REVIEW!**


	17. Chapter 17

_Time is what we want most, but what we use worst._

_-William Penn_

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_December 30, 1975_

Regulus Black was normally one who enjoyed seeing his brother get into trouble. He liked to see Sirius' eyes widen when he realized that his mother and father had caught him doing something stupid once again. Regulus loved to see the smug smirk Sirius always wore slide right off his face when he realized that he wasn't going to get away with being a complete and total prat like he normally did. Regulus found an immense amount of joy in telling his parents about all of the bad things Sirius did, despite the fact that it made him a snitch. They always seemed to care for him even more after learning about even more reasons to consider Sirius to be a complete waste of space and money. He did not however, much to his great surprise, expect to find himself not enjoying seeing his parents screaming at Sirius worse than they ever had before.

Regulus had been sneaking, not so subtlely, down to the kitchen to knick another piece of the cake that had been served after dinner when he had heard them. He had been thinking about that cake ever since he had retreated to his room to avoid spending more time with his brother than was vitally necessary. Sirius left a bad taste in Regulus' mouth due to the fact that he never knew how shut his mouth. He had fled before he could truly fathom how much he enjoyed the cake. He always enjoyed cake. He had found, however, that hearing those noises made his entire appetite slip away from him so suddenly he was sure it hadn't even been there in the first place.

He had shared enough spaces with his dorm mates at Hogwarts to know what that sort of sound was. He had heard it a hundred times coming from the seventh and sixth year dorms (and sometimes, disturbingly, from the fifth and fourth years). His first instinct, which he imagined was everybody's first instinct, was to smirk to himself.

Regulus' lips had curled into a roguish smile for half a moment before he felt his blood run cold in his veins. That sort of sound should not have been coming from his house. That sort of sound was something that he didn't even want to associate with anything to do with his parents, who resided in that house all the time. It made his skin crawl to think about. It took him half a moment longer, after effectively scrubbing his brain clean of all the scarring images that involved his parents, to realize why exactly those noises, which had gotten progressively louder, were in his house at all.

The cake had been completely forgotten. He, looking back on it, probably shouldn't have mentioned it to his father. He also probably shouldn't have been so irrationally angry that he stormed down to his father's study and hinted to him, and his nosy mother, about what was happening. It was probably an overreaction on his part. Those noises were not something he should have taken so seriously. He should have told himself that they meant nothing, just to avoid the explosion that was bound to happen. Regulus couldn't stop himself, however, when he thought about the fact that, per the contract, it was his job to make sure those sorts of sounds weren't happening at all.

Regulus felt like a six year old as he followed his parents as they stormed up the stairs towards Sirius' room. He had never seen his mother so angry in all of his life. That included the time, which Regulus still liked to look back on and laugh a little to himself, when Sirius had burned all the curtains in the drawing room, resulting in the entire house smelling like burnt hair for a month. Sirius had been grounded for two months; Regulus had gotten a new broom stick for being the 'good, sensible child'. He glanced at both of his parents, taking note of the fact that his father's face was redder than the Gryffindor house colors. Regulus was sure he could see multiple veins on his neck popping out as the three of them made their way up the massive stairs.

Regulus heard the distinctive sound of a thud just before his father threw open the door without even knocking.

Regulus looked at Sirius first. He was standing, in nothing but a pair of loose sleep pants, looking as if, well Regulus didn't like to think about why Sirius looked like that. His gaze traveled over to Maddie, who was currently sitting on his bed, frantically trying to fix her clothes into a respectable fashion. Her hair was all over the place, or at least more so than usual.

"Madeleine, get out of that bed." Orion did not even bother to hide the disgust in his voice as he moved further into the room. Regulus managed to tear his face away from Maddie long enough to see his father sliding his wand out of his pocket. "Put your shirt on." Orion snapped even louder at Sirius, sparks flying out of his wand in his anger.

Regulus pushed past his mother, ignoring her glare, so that he could see the two of them more clearly. He did not like the marks that were on his brother's chest and he certainly wasn't exactly fond of the fact that Maddie's shorts were so high up on her legs he could practically see everything. There was way too much skin showing, in his humbly confused opinion. He shook his head, trying to refocus his attention on the anger that was flowing from his father. Regulus was positive he could feel the anger from him filling up Sirius' horribly decorated room. It almost felt hotter in the room, which was absurd considering it was the dead of winter outside.

"How dare you?" Walburga's voice was so low, Regulus had to glance back over to make sure he had even heard her speak at all. "How dare you, when you know the deals that were made."

Maddie shuffled into a standing position, looking back and forth between Sirius and his parents. She was rubbing her hands along her shorts, attempting to pull them down to cover more of her thighs. Regulus didn't imagine that would be possible, considering how little fabric the shorts were made of. She shifted on her little feet, rubbing the toes of her left foot along the top of her right foot in the most nervous fashion he had ever seen.

"It's not whh-what you…" Maddie trailed off as she attempted to explain why she was in Sirius' room, in nothing but her night clothes, well past the time that would be considered appropriate.

"Shut your mouth, before you shame yourself and your family even further." Walburga spat, stepping in front of Regulus once again.

"I'm sor…"

"I said _silence_." Walburga pulled her own wand out, brandishing it at Maddie in such a fashion that made the young girl step back. Maddie tripped slightly over one of the numerous piles of clothes that littered Sirius' bedroom floor. Sirius made a move to keep her from falling before his father practically snarled at him to keep him in his place. "You will keep your words to yourself, lest I force you to choke on them."

The room was silent for a moment. It was so painfully awkward, Regulus almost considered leaving. He would have, if it hadn't been for the fact that Maddie was currently looking like she had been punched in the face repeatedly. They were not friends, but he still had never liked to see her upset in anyway if it could be at all avoided. He tended to think that way about any person that wasn't his brother, not that he would share that information with anyone.

"We made it perfectly clear, so clear that even your simplistic brain could understand, that you were to stay away from Madeleine Steele."

Regulus watched Maddie's face as it scrunched up even more in confusion at the process of the conversation. Her lips pursed up as she turned her gaze onto Sirius once again, searching for the answer to why exactly they were talking about her like that. He imagined Sirius would be too much of a coward to tell her the exact reason he was supposed to stay away from her. Regulus, as much as he tended to avoid paying attention to his brother's emotions, could see that Sirius had feelings for Maddie that were more than friendly. Of course, Regulus could postulate that anyone would see that there was more going on between them.

Or at least, there would have been.

"I'm confused." Maddie managed to squeak out. "What's going on?"

Regulus crossed his arms over his chest, debating whether or not if he should be the one to break the news to her. He figured he would probably be more polite and sensitive than either his mother or father. He would at least attempt to make it sound better than it was. He would at least try to make sure she didn't burst into tears.

"Your parents have agreed to a betrothal contract." Walburga said, not even bothering to look at Maddie. She didn't move her eyes away from Sirius. Maddie's mouth opened slightly as she cocked her head to the side. Regulus could see her brain working hard to process the information. It took her exactly three seconds to realize that they weren't talking about Sirius.

"Regulus..."

"You knew the agreement had been made and yet we find you disrespecting our entire family and our entire family's name." Orion moved even closer to Sirius, digging his wand into his chest. "You defiant little disgrace."

This was not exactly how Regulus imagined this conversation would have gone.

"I think this is going in the wrong direction…" Maddie trailed off, once again losing her voice at the sight of Walburga's fierce glare.

"I will not be interrupted by a girl who fashions herself as a whore in my own home."

Regulus winced. That might have been an offensive overstatement.

Sirius, seeming to finally realize what his parents were saying and implying about Maddie, immediately straightened up. His face went from being slightly alarmed to horribly livid looking in a matter of seconds. His fists clenched up at his sides, the veins and muscles in his arms bulging out. His grey eyes turned so dark Regulus had to check to make sure he wasn't seeing things. His hand immediately went to his nightstand, grabbing a hold of his wand. His fingers curled around it so tightly, they turned white.

"Get out." Sirius seethed, taking a daring step towards his father.

"What?"

"Get out of my room." Sirius repeated, raising his wand up in front of him. Maddie immediately moved to stand in between them, arms outstretched in an attempt to get Sirius to take a step back from his now murderous looking father.

"You don't speak to me like that."

"I will speak to you however I want."

Maddie let out an involuntary noise, seeming to wish for nothing more than for Sirius to shut his mouth before things got any worse. Regulus couldn't help but agree with her. She had paled considerably in the last five minutes. Regulus could see every vein in her legs and along her arms. Her hands had turned blue, which Regulus wasn't sure if he should be concerned about or not. He wasn't sure how much he should be concerned about her at all, in all honesty.

"You little…" Walburga's voice trailed off in anger.

"You have been a burden and an embarrassment for the entirety of your miserable life." Orion snapped, reaching out an arm to grasp the front of Sirius' shirt. Sirius shoved his arm away, hands clenching up even tighter. "We have ignored it for too long. You are disrespectful, arrogant, rude, and above all else, useless."

"Is that all?" Sirius asked derisively. "I'm sure you can think of a few more colorful adjectives if you think really hard."

"Do not…" Walburga seemed incapable of finishing her sentences.

"I have to say mother, this is the first time I have ever seen you at a loss for words. I think I like it."

"Do not speak to your mother that way." Orion spat, grabbing onto Sirius's shirt before he had time to pry off his arms. Orion shoved him back until his entire body was against the wall. There was an audible crack as his head smacked against one of the posters. Maddie twitched as she watched the scene unfold. She made a move towards them, only to be stopped by a look from both Walburga and Regulus. "I have put up with you for long enough."

"Sixteen years is all you can take?" Sirius sounded like he was struggling to breathe. "Maybe I should have tried harder."

Regulus was sure that Sirius had done all he could to piss off his parents to the point that they wanted to pull their hair out. Orion pushed Sirius into the wall even further, causing him to wince as the pressure on his neck and chest.

"I have had enough of you." Orion's face was closer to Sirius', his voice coming out as a harsh whisper.

"That makes two of us."

"Sirius." Maddie finally managed gasp out. She took two shaky steps towards the two of them, arms outstretched in a desperate attempt to get Orion to release his grip on Sirius. Her face was ashen like Regulus had never seen before. "Please, both of you…"

"Silence, before we regret even agreeing at all in the first place." Orion didn't even look over his shoulder. "You are as much to blame as he is. You are not my child and you will not speak to me like you are even close to being my equal. You are nothing and you will be nothing until you marry my son. You will keep _silent_ unless you want to spend the remainder of your foreseeable future desperately trying, and failing, to be seen as suitable match for my son."

Regulus didn't know whether he should be flattered by his father's words or appalled at the fact that he was currently attempting to softly, or not so softly, choke his brother. Sirius' face was beginning to turn red as he tried to push their father off of him. Sirius struggled for a moment before he finally seemed to have enough of his father's figure in front of him. He brought the hand up that wasn't holding his wand to punch his father full on in the face. Orion staggered for a moment before he reeled back, holding his wand up in front of him.

"Cruicio!"

Maddie screamed instantly running forward, slipping on the large socks she was wearing. Regulus immediately lurched forward, wrapping his arms around her to keep her from interfering. She struggled, slapping at his arms frantically. Her eyes were watering with tears as she looked at Sirius writhing in pain on the floor. He wasn't even screaming out loud, simply clutching at his body and twitching violently. He was beginning to foam at the mouth by the time Orion stopped.

"You will leave this house now." Orion spat, placing his wand in his breast pocket in a simple motion.

Maddie was still struggling in Regulus' arms, fully crying by that point. He felt her hips digging into his arms painfully. Her feet slammed against his shins, leaving bruises. Her shirt was ridding up on her stomach, forcing him to reach down to keep it from going any further.

"Regulus, take her back to her room." Walburga said, not even looking at Sirius struggling to get up off the floor. There was a small line of spit, and a small amount of blood, seeping out of his mouth onto one of his piles of clothes. "Do not let her leave."

Regulus wasn't sure why, but he couldn't really seem to get his legs to move. His arms remained locked around Maddie's waist, attempting to pull her in closer as she cried even louder. He couldn't stop staring at Sirius laying on the ground. He had seen his brother fight with his parents before, more times than he could count actually, but it had never been as bad as it currently was. He wasn't sure why, but he severely disliked himself at that moment for ever wanting a piece of cake in the first place. It had all seemed to spiral downhill from that point. There was a lot more crying, and drooling, and pain filled screams than he could have ever begun to imagine.

By the time Sirius managed to get himself into a standing position both of the older Blacks were glaring at him like he was the reincarnation of everything terrible in their little world. Regulus struggled to pull Maddie out of the room, only to have her elbow him roughly.

"You have five minutes." Orion said slowly, crossing his thick arms over his chest.

Regulus couldn't actually believe they were kicking him out. He had known it was something they wanted practically since the day he was born. They hated him more than anything, yet for some reason Regulus had never imagined they would actually go so far as kicking him out.

"Is this actually happening?" Regulus asked, almost instantly regretting it as soon as he saw the look on his mother's face. Maddie fought even more at his grip, arms flailing about like an idiotic chicken.

"I think it would be wise if you kept your mouth shut."

Sirius staggered for a moment, a little bit of blood trailing down his chin before he finally managed to straighten himself up. He swayed for a moment before turning his gaze on his parents. He did his best to avoid looking at the currently crying Maddie.

"I'm leaving. I've wanted to for longer than I can even imagine. You are the worst fucking people I have ever met and if you die in the next five minutes it won't have come soon enough."

"Get. Out." Walburga spat.

"With pleasure, you uptight, self-righteous bitch."

Regulus couldn't stop his mouth from dropping open. Maddie had stopped squirming in his arms for the briefest of moments. His arms fell slack at his sides as he watched his older brother pull on a pair of dirty pants over his sleep pants in the angriest fashion he had ever seen. He threw a jacket over his shoulders haphazardly. Walburga did not stay to watch if he was leaving or not. Instead she turned on her heel and stalked out, throwing one more disgusted look at him for good measure. Orion, Maddie, and Regulus didn't move. Regulus wasn't even sure if he was capable of moving. He was sure Maddie wasn't.

Sirius glared at his father for a moment longer before he turned to face Maddie. He looked at her for a long while, eyes wracking over her slumped figure in his brother's arms. His lips quirked down into a deep scowl as he saw the look on her face. She didn't seem to care about how tightly Regulus was holding onto her, all she seemed to be able to focus on was him.

She looked horrified.

Everything about her face was horrified.

"I…"

"Out."

Sirius did not need to be told twice. He looked at Maddie for a second longer before he bolted out of the room, with nothing but his mismatched clothes and his wand. The rest of the room remained silent as the remaining three looked at the door he had just left through.

Orion 's breathing finally calmed down. He didn't even bother to look back over at the remaining two before he stomped out of the room, leaving the two of them alone.

Regulus let out a low whistle, finally removing his arms from around Maddie's waist.

"Well that was fun." Regulus should have expected the slap that came from her. "Oh come on, there's some cake in the kitchen. We could split a slice."

He probably shouldn't have winked at her.

"How can you be so damn calm?" Maddie cried out suddenly, eyes slightly wild. The red rims around her eyes were so highlighted it made Regulus cringe. "Your brother just got kicked out of your house. Your father just tortured him. How can you be so calm?"

Regulus pondered for a moment. "I kind of always expected it."

"Wha…" Her mouth fell open. "How can you say that?"

"I mean, it's Sirius."

"I don't even understand what's happening right now." Maddie began to pace. Regulus was surprised it hadn't started sooner. "Like literally, my brain isn't even functioning at a quarter capacity."

"I could reiterate, but I think you would just hit me again."

"Why did he leave me here?" She seemed to realize what she had just said and began to tear up again. "He left me. Afte…he left me. How could he just…"

"I think he was preoccupied." Regulus wasn't exactly sure why he was attempting to justify his brother, considering. He knew he was going to regret what he was about to ask, but he couldn't seem to stop himself before the words slipped out of his mouth. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She looked up at him, face scrunched up slightly. "About what?"

"About…" He was definitely going to regret what he was about to say. "About us."

Definite regret.

Her face contorted for the briefest of moments before she stormed over to him with her fists scrunched up. "There is no 'us'. There will never be an 'us'. I don't know if you missed what just happened, considering you're an oblivious sod who cares way too much about how his hair looks, but my best friend, who I am pretty sure was just about to be more than a best friend, just left me alone with his psychotic family without even saying goodbye. That asshole didn't even bother to apologize for keeping the secret about me marrying his damn brother. I hope you choke on that cake, you insufferable piece of dog poo."

"That's a little harsh."

"Shut up." Maddie snapped, rolling her eyes in the angriest fashion he had ever seen. "Just shut..."

"I don't think I'm the one you're supposed to be angry at." Regulus said, fully hating the fact that he was still talking to her when she was acting so, for lack of a better term, crazy.

"You're definitely number three on the list." Maddie said simply, crossing her arms over her chest. "Right after Sirius and Rory. You're before your parents, so congratulations."

"Thanks I worked reall…"

"Stop talking."

"Right." Regulus slowly started to move towards the door, hating how much she was looking like she wanted to punch him directly in his genitals. "When you feel like talking, because we have to at some point, I'll be in the kitchen drowning out the horrible awkwardness of this entire evening with cake. Come join me when you stop being so, how do I put this? Oh yes, psycho."

"I will kill you slowly if you don't leave right now."

He rushed out of Sirius' room, shutting the door behind him. He stood by the door for a moment, listening to the sound of her feet followed by the creaking of his brother's bed. He listened for a moment longer before he heard the distinctive sound of her crying into the pillows. Regulus felt his stomach twinge slightly for a moment before he shook his head, moving away from the door.

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**Sorry for the little bit of foul language. It seemed to fit. Anywho, drama. What did you guys think about Regulus in this chapter. He is really hard to write. **

**REVIEW! I love hearing from you guys, it makes me smile literally so much.**


	18. Chapter 18

_Lost time is never found again. _

_-Benjamin Franklin_

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March 1, 1976

Lily Evans had been at a loss for words for longer than she ever had been. It had started when everyone came back from holiday. Rory had been buzzing about some boy, or man as she more accurately described him in graphic detail, nonstop, resulting in Lily hardly being able to get a word in edgewise. James, for some reason, wasn't bothering her as much, resulting in even more silence between the two of them. Sirius looked, and acted, like he had been punched in the gut repeatedly. They had never been very close, so she hardly deemed it appropriate to ask him why he looked so sad. Maddie, for some reason entirely unknown to Lily, looked and acted worse than all of them. Lily didn't know what to say to any of them, so she resorted to keeping her mouth, and opinions, to herself the majority of the time.

Lily would have been so undeniably appreciative for the odd silence between her friends if it had been even one year earlier. She didn't care to admit it, even to herself, but she was horribly, painfully, annoyingly, antisocial and singularly focused on her studies. Even her friendships couldn't have distracted her then. She was always amazed that they stuck by her, considering, as Rory put it, she had a constant stick up her ass. That wasn't the case anymore, it seemed.

Lily found herself, for what felt like the hundredth time in the last two months, sitting quietly in the secluded section of the library that very few people knew about. The fire that was nestled in the corner crackled quietly, sending heat spilling out over the table and three arm chairs that were squished into the small space. She had her feet curled up underneath her legs, tapping her fingers on the tops of her knees. She could feel the warmth from the fire curling around her fingers, making her feel distinctly uncomfortable.

Remus kept glancing over at her from behind his book. His light blue eyes flashed with concern at the current atmosphere of the small space, before he returned his lazy gaze back to his book on potion making in stressful situations. He looked distinctly paler than normal, which Lily was beginning to think she knew the exact reason for, but chose not to say anything. He let out a heavy sigh, finally shutting his book for good before he turned in his chair to look at the other two people around him.

Maddie didn't look up at the noise. She kept her eyes trained on the stone floor covered in an ornate purple rug. She stared longer than anybody should at the frays on the edges, eyes slipping and out of focus. She kept running her fingers along the edges of her skirt, picking at the loose bits of strings that fell out like fringe. Her hair was pulled back from her face in a messy pony tail, which was the first sign something was bothering her. Her face was gaunter than it had been when she came back from break and finger nails were bit down to nubs. Her eyes were red from all the crying that Lily knew she had been doing, although she never said anything about it to anyone.

Lily cursed herself once again, after getting a good long look at Maddie, for not knowing what to say to cheer her up. She glanced once at Remus before she scooted closer to Maddie, placing a tentative hand on her bouncing knee.

"There's a Hogsmeade weekend coming up." She paused, glancing at Remus once again before continuing. "Would you like to come with me? I am sure they are going to be getting in some new Spring dresses at that boutique you like so much. Maybe Rory could come with us?"

"No." Maddie looked up, shaking her head so firmly her long ponytail swung back and forth in anger.

Lily let out a loud huff of anger, sitting back into the cushy armchair she was occupying in frustration. "Why can't you two just talk to each other again?"

"I don't want to talk about it." Maddie said simply, still not bothering to look up from the carpet. Her hands squeezed the fabric of her skirt for a moment before she let it go after her breathing finally managed to return to normal. "We can go, just me and you, if you would like. Remus you could come and tell us we look pretty if you want, but other than that, I see no need to invite more people than is necessary."

"I do not need to go shopping with you to tell you both that you look pretty." Remus wasn't even surprised when Maddie reached over to smack him with one of her hands.

"That is beside the point." Lily snapped, shooting Remus a dry look. "She is your best friend and the two of you haven't spoken in two months."

"I don't want to talk about it, Lily." Maddie sounded a bit too much like a sulking child for Lily's taste.

"We should respect her wishes." Remus said, hoping to deter the red-head from her pestering. He could see it clearly written on her freckled face. Lily crossed her arms over her chest in a huff, sinking further into her chair. "I am sure you will tell us what happened over break when you are ready." Remus directed the last part towards Maddie, giving Lily a warning look.

"What about Sirius?" Lily pushed, completely ignoring the look on Remus' face. "You haven't even looked at him since he cornered you on the train ride back. Something is up with you and I want to know what it is." She paused, deciding how to finish her sentence. "As your interim best friend, I feel like it is my duty to help you with whatever is bothering you."

"Lily." Remus' voice was low as she shot Lily a warning look.

Maddie finally looked up at the two of them, eyes rimmed with red. Her lips were pursed so tightly, Lily could see the lines forming on her upper part of her mouth. Her nostrils were flaring with every breath she took. Her cheeks were flushed slightly, as were her ears and the tip of her nose. She crossed and uncrossed her arms over her chest multiple times as she regarded the stubborn girl in front of her with steely conviction. Her shoe tapped against the floor angrily for a solid five minutes before she finally opened her mouth to speak to Lily in the most acrid sounding voice she could muster. Her words came out tight and clipped, like she was fighting to control them desperately.

"I honestly do not want to talk about it, Lily. I have a lot on my mind, much more than just Rory and Sirius, and talking about it will only make me more upset. I appreciate your concern, however persistent and annoying it is."

Remus coughed uncomfortable at the palpable silence that followed Maddie's words. Lily's face was red with embarrassment and frustration. She ran her hands through her hair for a moment, smoothing it completely and utterly before she finally bothered to speak again.

"I do not mean to be pushy, Maddie, but I am really concerned for you. I have seen you spending time with Regulus Black. I don't know if that is to upset Sirius, for whatever it is he did or if…"

"Lily, please."

Maddie stood up suddenly, fist clenched at her sides so tightly the other two could see tendons sticking out against her pale skin. Her jaw clenched horribly, her eyes twitching like she was crazy. She tugged at her uniform tie, yanking on it until she pulled it completely off her neck. It left angry marks against her skin. Her neck was flushed all the way up towards the bottoms of her ears and down to the top of her chest. Her eyes had become nothing more than slits.

"I don't want to talk about it."

She picked her way around the small gathering of armchairs before vaulting out of the library, leaving the other two sitting in awkward silence. Lily's eyes followed her path, mouth open slightly in shock before Remus finally managed to draw her attention with a well-timed and well placed cough into the sleeve of his uniform sweater.

"I told you to leave her be, Lily."

Maddie wasn't exactly sure where exactly she was planning on going when she left the two of them in the library. She knew she had felt so painfully hot under their gazes and the intense heat of the fire that she needed to leave. The only sound that followed her was the soft tapping of her black sandals on the stone floor and her heave breathing. Her cheeks felt like they were on fire as she made her way farther and farther away from the library. She was sure her chest was about to burst into flames and burn her up from the inside out. Everything on her body ached like she had just run a million miles. She stooped to the floor, desperate for the coolness that the stone of the castle provided. Maddie scooted her body backwards until her back was flush with one of the walls. Her shoulder blades scraped against the rough surface as she tried to cool down.

She slumped her face into her hands, pawing at her eyes until they felt raw.

If she was being honest, the last two months of her life had been nothing but pure torture.

She hadn't talked to Rory because she wasn't sure how she could look her in the eye after finding out she knew about Abigail all along. She couldn't bring herself to ask her about it, to talk to her about it, without wanting to full out punch her in her face. She felt like Rory had stabbed her all the way down to her bone before turning the knife. She couldn't face Sirius because every time she looked at him all she saw was the back of his head leaving her with his family; leaving her with his brother. She couldn't stop the horrified feeling she got whenever she thought about the fact that he had kept the information about the marriage from her. She felt like he had used her.

She felt dirty.

She scrubbed at her eyes even harder, making them water at the force.

Nothing in her life was lining up like it should. She felt panicky constantly after finding out what her family was planning. All she could imagine was the terror that could happen. She saw faces flashes in front of her, screaming out at her for help. She hadn't been able to sleep most nights, resulting in an almost constant state of exhaustion that left her even more irritable than she was normally. She found it was hard to eat from the squirrelly feelings in her stomach that plagued her daily. Everything about her body felt like it was rejecting the current situation.

Everything felt wrong.

"You look terrible." Maddie felt an arm snake around her shoulders for the briefest of moments before she shook it off angrily. Regulus sounded affronted before he let out a small noise of acceptance, removing his arm from around his shoulders as he settled down on the floor next to her. "You should wash your hair more."

"I feel terrible."

"No word from your sister, then?"

"Like I would tell you that, of all people." Maddie let out a derisive snort.

"The disdain is a little unwarranted." Regulus shrugged out of his cloak, throwing it onto the ground next to him haphazardly. "I think a kiss would be a much more appropriate greeting."

"Kiss my ass."

"With pleasure, although not here. That might alarm the first years."

Maddie let out a loud cry off disgust at innuendo. She shoved him angrily, attempting to move farther away from him in the process. She smacked his ribs with her elbow, secretly smirking to himself when he let out a groan of pain. He stayed a respectable distance from her after that point. He could feel the anger rolling off of her, resulting in him keeping his jokes, and snarky comments, to himself for remainder of their time together.

"In all seriousness, you still haven't heard anything from Abigail?" Regulus ventured to ask again, folding his long arms over his bent knees. "It's been two months since she left."

"I'm not going to talk about this with you." Maddie said tersely, keeping her gaze on the tapestry on the opposite side of the wall. She had taken to counting the number of unicorns to avoid thinking about what Regulus was currently trying to pry out of her.

"Who are you going to talk about it with? Sirius?" Regulus knew that was out of line, although Maddie was certain he said it on purpose to make her even more upset. "I haven't seen the two of you evening making eyes at each other like you normally did. I'm not complaining, per say, but I am just wondering who else you think you have that you can talk about this with."

"I don't have to talk about it with anybody." Maddie dropped her head onto her knees. "I can just settle it on my own."

"How exactly do you plan on finding your missing sister without any help?"

Maddie pursed her lips up against her knees. "I haven't figured that part out yet, necessarily."

Regulus let out a snort. "I haven't seen you do anything but cry and hide in the library with Evans and Lupin."

"Lily and Remus, you mean."

"Whatever you call them, they can do nothing to help you with what's going on with your sister."

"Shouldn't you be somewhere kicking puppies or something?"

"I have nothing against puppies I have a soul, after all." Regulus said with all seriousness, scooting slightly closer to her with a small smile. "Who hates puppies?"

Maddie laughed, hating herself for it. She glanced up at him, tapping her fingers along the tops of her hands as she took in his face. His hair, which she couldn't help but compare to Sirius', was swept back from his face, framing his intensely grey eyes. He was smirking at her, which she found was almost constant with him. His tie was undone around his neck, making him look much more casual than he normally was. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to the middle of his forearms, highlighting the muscles and the tan of his skin. She hated that he looked so much like his brother. She didn't like thinking about Sirius as much as she did.

Sirius' sleeves had been rolled up the last time she fully spoke to him.

* * *

"_Please stop walking away from me, Mads." _

"_Hypocrite." Maddie spat out over her shoulder, continuing her way down the train. Her black heels clacked against the carpet in a muffled fashion. Her hands were clenched so tightly around the fabric of her tweed skirt she was certain her fingers were going to be rubbed raw from the friction. She heard his footsteps behind her, following her like a dog on her heels. She pushed people aside as she hurried away from him, ignoring their shouts and cries of annoyance and protest. "You're a damn hypocrite and you know it." _

"_How many times do I have to apologize to you before you will talk to me again?" _

"_It isn't a time thing." She shoved past a pair of kissing third years, forcing them to separate. They shouted profanities at her as she marched down the hallway towards one of the compartments she knew would be empty. Sirius kept up pace with her the entire time, dodging the people she was pushing out of her way. _

"_I didn't want to leave you." He said, reaching out an arm to attempt to get her to stop her rampage for the briefest of moments. "It killed me to leave you." _

"_I'm sure it did." Maddie didn't even bother to stop the malice from coming out in her voice. She glanced in all of the compartments she passed. She avoided making eye contact with the people she knew, specifically Regulus and James, keeping her head down as she went. People turned to whisper about her and Sirius as they cut a path through the throngs of people milling about in the corridor. There seemed to be more people than usual to Maddie. There seemed to be more people than usual talking about her. There seemed to be more people staring. _

_She almost cried out in relief when she saw an empty compartment. She practically threw herself into it, slamming the door shut behind her. She leaned back against it, breathing heavily. She leaned against it for a moment. She barely had time to pull her legs up to her chest when the door slammed open behind her, sending her flailing to the floor. A pair of hands immediately set about pulling her back up, helping her up into an awkward standing position. She knew it was Sirius before she even looked up at him. _

"_Just go away." Maddie said, stalking over to sit in the seat by the window. _

"_I don't know what more you want from me." Sirius snapped, peering out of the door before he slammed it shut. "I said I was sorry."_

_Maddie griped her hands together, lacing her fingers together in a tight knot. In all actuality she did not know what more he could say to her to get the pain in her chest to go away. She hadn't been able to think about him without wanting to cry. She hadn't been able to think without his face swimming in front of her vision. She felt like she wanted to hate him but she knew that that wasn't an option. He meant too much to her to hate him. Hating him would mean there wasn't anything about him that she still admired. Her mind was torn in two; torn between wanting to hit him for making her feel used and left, and wanting to hug him after being so worried about him. _

"_You didn't tell me, when you knew the whole time that I was going to be forced to marry Regulus. You knew the whole time that I was with you and you didn't say anything." _

_Sirius was silent for a moment, hand squeezing the handle of the door so tightly his knuckles turned white. "Why would I tell you that? Why would I…" _

"_Because you should have cared about more than just yourself. You should have thought about it before you started snogging me. What were you going to do? Shag me before dumping me like you do all of the other whores you spend your time with?" _

"_You know that's…" _

"_I don't know anything. I thought I knew you. I thought you would have told me because I thought I meant more to you." _

_Sirius opened his mouth before closing it, seeming at a loss for words. _

"_You don't know what it was like." Maddie felt her tears spilling out, despite herself. "What happened in your bedroom was…" She paused scrubbing at the tears on her face in a desperate attempt to get rid of them. "Why would you do that when you knew that nothing could ever come from it? I thought you felt something more than just…" _

"_I…" Sirius trailed off. _

"_I don't want to talk about it anymore. I just need you to say away from me. I can't look at you without wanting to hit you. You made me feel used and worthless and I can't look at you without feeling like that again."_

* * *

"Maddie?" Regulus reached out a hand, shaking her out of her reverie. She hurriedly whipped away the tears that had spilled while she was thinking. She shook her head, looking at him with wide eyes. "You still with me?"

"Sorry. I was just thinking." Maddie said, feeling too worn out to fight the urge to share with him.

"I could tell. You get this constipated look on your face when you think too hard."

"Charming." Maddie said, rolling her eyes.

"You can trust me, you know." Regulus said after a long pause. He reached out to grab her hand, half expecting her to slap him. She let him hold her hand, which was the biggest sign that something was truly bothering her. "I haven't heard anything about Abigail. I would tell you if I had."

"No I can't." Maddie said. "I don't think you would tell me. You're one of them. I heard your joining up this summer."

Regulus gripped her hand tighter before speaking. "We shouldn't talk about this. It is none of your business."

"Then you shouldn't have brought up Abigail. I'm worried about her. She just up and disappeared and now I haven't heard anything from her in two months. She could be dead."

"We would have heard something if she was dead." Regulus let go of her hand, using his own to stand up in front of her. "Look, Maddie, you have to understand. You can't be sticking your nose everywhere to find Abigail. You can't keep asking questions like you have been. People will start to notice. Everyone already knows that Sirius isn't what they thought he was, but you can't get dragged down with him. You can't keep stirring stuff up like you have been. All the questions can't keep happening. Everybody is already talking about what happened at Christmas."

"I can't just forget about her." She paused, almost saying she could forget about what they were planning for Muggle Salem. She was fairly positive Regulus would rat her out immediately if she mentioned that to him, so she kept her mouth shut tightly.

"If you know what's good for you, you will. If you know what's good for you, you'll stay away from Sirius and you'll stay away from asking too many questions."

"I'm not going to do that." Maddie said, secretly vowing to herself that she wouldn't ever let it go. She wouldn't ever stop asking her questions.

She hated to admit it to even herself, but she couldn't help but feel at a loss for what to do without Sirius. She didn't know who to talk to about what she had heard. She didn't know how to function without being terrified of getting caught. Regulus had been forcing his company on her for the past two months and she had to constantly watch what she was saying to avoid saying something to him that would get her, and the rest of those involved, in trouble. She couldn't shake the feeling that if she was caught snooping, which she had been doing with her time more and more, she would get in so much trouble. There was so much on the line, and she couldn't help but feel like she was doing a horrible job. Nothing was falling into line. James and Remus knew nothing, even though they tried to talk her through it. She couldn't even be in the same room as Sirius and Rory, even though they were the ones that could help her the most. She felt oddly alone, and she was highly uncomfortable with it. She didn't know how to handle it.

"Just stop trying to find her." Regulus said finally, giving her a very stern look. "It's might be better if she isn't found."

* * *

**So Abigail is missing. This was kind of fillerish. Maddie goes all 007 in the next chapter and her and Rory share a few words. If you have this Favorited or alerted, please tell me why. I love to hear from you guys. **

**REVIEW!**


	19. Chapter 19

_If you judge people, you have no time to love them._

_-Mother Teresa_

* * *

_March 4th, 1976_

Books were useless, Maddie had decided. She threw her latest book to the side, sighing in frustration. It clattered to the library floor, sending dust flying up all around her from the dirty ground. She glared at the dirty book like it had personally offended her before she stood up. She kicked it angrily as she stalked away from her work table. That book had been about as helpful as the last one she had scanned. They were all useless and lacking in the information she needed.

She rubbed her eyes as she made her way back towards the shelves. Maddie had lost track of how much time she had been in the library. It could have been a month and she wouldn't have noticed. She was certain she had missed at least two meals. Her stomach was clenching and unclenching horribly. She paid it very little mind as she began to peruse the hundreds and hundreds of books once again. Their titles blurred together as she struggled to focus on them. They were all starting to look the same. She wished, for not the first time, that she had some sort of idea what she was looking for. She didn't know what she was looking for, resulting in her reading book after book that left her knowing as much as she did before.

"Miniolple, Minnish, Minnton…" Maddie ran her hand along the ancient spines of the books, mumbling to herself as she went. She had read all those books already. She had fallen asleep three pages in in most of those books.

"Still haven't found anything?" Maddie didn't look at James. She kept her gaze on the numerous books, still murmuring to herself. "You've been in here since Friday afternoon."

"I've eaten."

"Occasionally." James said simply, moving to stand behind Maddie as she looked at the books. "I brought you some toast from breakfast."

He pulled a cloth out from his bag. He handed the bundle to her, taking note of the excited look in her eyes as she snatched at it. She unfolded the sides quickly, paying very little attention to the crumbs that spilled to the floor. She tore off a large chunk of toast, shooting him an appreciative smile before she shoved the large corner into her mouth.

"Thank you." She breathed out, cheeks completely full of toast.

"It wasn't my idea." James shrugged.

Maddie froze, a bit of toast sticking out of the side of her mouth. She pushed it back in with her hand, chewing slower than she had been before. The toast felt much dryer than it had before. It felt tough as she swallowed it thickly. She handed the cloth back to James, nodding slowly.

"Will you tell them I appreciate it?" Maddie turned back to the book shelf. It suddenly looked much taller than before. "If you don't mind."

"'Course I will." James sidled up behind her, crossing his arms over his chest. "He practically tackled me as I was leaving breakfast this morning to make sure I brought it to you."

They fell into silence. Maddie could hear the sound of people reading to themselves from all around her. The sound of pages turning and quills scraping was all she had heard for the last two days. Maddie almost found it comforting by that point in her time in the library. She cracked her knuckles absentmindedly, pointedly ignoring the last part of James' sentence. She would focus on that later, if she found herself in a particularly forgiving mood.

"I can't find anything." Maddie said after a palpable pause. "I've searched through hundreds of books and I still haven't found anything."

James sighed audibly, coming to stand next to her. He leaned against the bookshelf, folding his lanky arms over his chest. He ran a hand through his hair. She looked up at the bookshelf for a moment longer before she finally slumped back against it, mimicking his movements by crossing her arms over her chest. Her hands were covered in a fine layer of dust from all of the books she had been holding. It smeared over her sleeves, leaving behind little grey track marks.

"I just don't know where to look that I haven't before."

"You must have found something?" James asked, glancing at from behind his circular glasses.

"I found something that involves a large amount of Floo Powder, but other than that, nothing."

James nodded, reaching a hand up to his face. He rubbed his hand over his eyes and nose, leaning further back into the shelf. "That's useless."

"I know."

"Has Regulus let anything slip that might be useful? Any sort of hint about what they're planning?"

Maddie looked at the opposite bookshelf, shaking her head slowly.

"We don't really talk when we're together." Maddie said, tapping her fingers on the tops of her arms.

"Gross, I don't need to know what you and that slimy git do with your time."

"Oh God, try to not make me gag. That isn't what I meant." Maddie said, feeling fully horrified at the mere thought. "We don't spend that much time together, anyway."

"At least I won't have nightmares now." James laughed, nudging her slightly with his elbow. "Me and Sirius have been talking…"

"Sirius and I." Maddie said simply, not bothering to look up at him. James let out an annoyed snort, nudging her once again. "Sorry. I've been reading for the past two and half days. I don't think I've ever felt so smart."

"Anyway, we've been talking, and we think you need to go ahead and tell someone."

"I know." Maddie said. She had come to realize that very early on into her reading. She had found nothing. She had searched, scowered, and scanned until she thought her eyes might start bleeding. She had more paper cuts that she cared to count. She literally knew nothing that would help them stop what was being planned for Muggle Salem. All she had found was more endless frustration and maddening amounts of useless information. She was just about to give it up when James had come strolling in. Maybe the toast was just what she needed to spur her to keep looking for what she needed to find. "I've even thought about sneaking into the restricted section."

Maddie was sure she had never seen James look so excited. He immediately pushed himself away from the shelves, a large smile cracking his previously grim face. He grabbed her arm, pulling her into his arms before swinging her around in a motion similar to a music-less dance. She was certain he was about to start jumping up and down if she didn't stop him.

"What has got you so excited?" Maddie asked, prying James' arms off of her.

"I never thought I'd hear you say that." He looked like he might wet himself with excitement. "Please tell me you're not joking."

"Not joking about what?" Maddie asked, stepping away from him slightly at the manic enthusiasm on his face.

"You want to go to the restricted section." James was practically bouncing. Maddie's eyes immediately widened. She shook her head, knowing exactly what he was planning. His brown eyes were sparkling as he started pacing back and forth in front of her. "We've been waiting for this day for the past six years, Maddie."

"Just hold…"

"I'm so proud. We were honestly beginning to wonder if you had learned anything from us in the slightest. Sirius and I," He emphasized the grammar with flourish of his hands, "were beginning to have our doubts about you."

"What are you talking about?"

"I think this is the best day of my life, excluding the time Rory bought me those glasses and the time my Lily-Flower smiled at me, of course." James let out an excited laugh. "Sirius is going to be so excited."

Maddie extended her foot, catching James as he passed by her. She felt the familiar feeling of satisfaction washing over her when he stumbled in front of her, finally seeming to come to his senses and back down from his excited ramble.

"I'm not sneaking into the restricted section." Maddie crossed her arms over her chest, giving him a defiant look. "You know I don't do that sort of thing."

"You'll love it." James said, completely ignoring her. "Meet us in the common room tonight, at like ten-ish."

"James…" Maddie felt like she was fighting a losing battle. She could see that no matter what she said, James had already made up his mind.

"It'll be great Mads." James was positively beaming. "Just make sure you keep it civil with Sirius. The poor kid's practically wallowing. I've never seen him wallow. It isn't a good look for him. Horrible for his complexion."

"You're such a girl."

"You flatter." James leaned forward, grabbing her around her middle. He pulled her up into a tight hug. He dropped her immediately, placing a loud kiss on her cheek. "I'll see you at ten."

He gave her one last excited look before he raced out of the library. She watched him, mouth hanging open. She wasn't exactly sure if she had just agreed or not. It felt like she had. She slumped back until she was practically sitting on the shelves behind her. It wasn't as if she had another option. She had searched for hours on end, only to come up empty handed. She imagined she was running out of options. It was a depressing notion. She didn't like to think that she was forced to rely on the one person she wanted to avoid at all costs.

* * *

Rory had been reading her letters from Xeno for what felt like the hundredth time when Maddie came stalking into the girl's dormitory with a sour look on her face. Rory glanced up from her stack of letters, feeling her excited blush slipping away the moment she got a look at Maddie. Rory hadn't seen her since Friday. Normally, she would have been thankful. Maddie had taken to glaring at her whenever she could. It was hard, harder than Rory liked to think about, to have her best friend glaring at her like she hated her.

Maddie moved towards her trunk, pulling her uniform sweater off as she went. It crumpled onto the floor in the pile of clothes that Maddie normally would have been appalled by.

Lily glanced up from her book, making eye-contact with Rory for a moment before she looked back down.

"I've been wondering when you were going to come back." Lily said slowly, turning the page of her book idly.

Maddie, who was currently in the process of digging through her trunk, didn't look up. "I've been busy." Rory snorted, folding up Xeno's letter in a practiced motion.

"Busy avoiding your problems, you mean." Rory didn't even bother to hide the annoyance in her voice. Maddie's back visibly tensed at her words. She paused in her digging briefly enough to shoot Rory a very dark look over her shoulder.

"I'm interested to hear what you know about other people's problems, Aurora." Maddie's voice was so sharp it could have cut glass easily. "I hear you are an expert on the subject."

Rory stuffed Xeno's letters away angrily before standing up in the middle of the room. Lily put her book down, scooting closer to look at the two of them with reluctant interest. She pulled her red hair back from her face before she placed her head in her hands. She looked like she was watching a spectator sport. Alice, who had just entered the room with an airy smile on her face, looked between the two of them with large eyes. Her smile immediately dropped from her place, only to be replaced with slight alarm. Rory paid the two of them very little mind as she watched her best friend, or someone who was supposed to be her best friend, dig through her trunk with anger all over her face.

"Is there something you want to say to me, Madeleine?" Rory asked, crossing her arms over her chest. She wanted nothing more than to be reading her letters again, musing quietly to herself about all the romantic things Xeno would be saying if he was there with her. "You've been giving me dirty looks for the past two months. I would be interested to know what's crawled up your ass and died this time around. Maybe it's just your usual uptight bitchiness showing through in an extra strong dose."

"Rory…" Alice attempted to stem the anger in the room to very little affect.

"You knew that Abigail was seeing a muggle and you didn't tell me." Maddie seethed, finally standing up. She clutched the black clothes in her hands like she was suffocating them. "You knew and you didn't think it was important enough to tell me that she was sneaking around."

"It wasn't my secret to tell." Rory said simply.

"She disappeared. Did you know that?" Maddie snapped, pulling the clothes close to her chest. "She ran off with that muggle. If you had told me, maybe it wouldn't have happened. They're going to kill her if they find her. Did you think about that?"

"How is that my fault?" Rory spit out, mouth set into a grim line.

Maddie opened her mouth to respond, only to shut it again. She gave Rory one last look before she hurriedly slipped on the black clothes. She threw her uniform onto the ground as she walked out of the room, not even bothering to look back at them as she left. She slammed the door so violently behind her the bed frames shook from the force. Rory had half the mind to follow her. She had missed Maddie over the last two months. The finally look on Maddie's face kept her from following, however. She looked so hurt, Rory wasn't sure if anything she said would be able to fix that sort of pain.

* * *

James and Sirius immediately bolted up to their feet when Maddie came storming into the common room, covered head to toe in black clothes. Her hair was pulled back from her face in a messy ponytail that had little wisps flying in her face.

"I don't want to do this." Maddie said, looking at only James as she spoke. "I really don't know why I'm here."

"I knew you'd show up." James glanced over at Sirius, taking special note of the guarded look on her face. "You little risk taker you. You couldn't really resist the idea."

"Yes, I'm a real daredevil." Maddie was not in the mood for his games. She had not expected to talk to Rory. She had half expected her to be in the owlry, where she spent most of her free time nowadays. She wouldn't have even bothered to change if she had known she was going to be there. She had taken great lengths to avoid talking to her. It was rather hard to be in the same room as her. Maddie felt like such a petulant child for thinking like that, but it was the first place her mind and feelings went to when Rory cropped up in her mind.

The three of them stared at each other for a long moment before James spoke, peering between the other two with a delightful sneaky look on his face.

"What are you wearing?" James asked, eyeing her up and down.

"All black." Maddie said simply. "Aren't you supposed to wear all black when doing this sort of thing? I don't really…"

"It's perfect." Sirius said, speaking for the first time. Maddie looked over at him, mouth twisted up slightly. "You…"

"I think it's absolutely adorable." James interrupted, scrubbing around in his robe.

"I should go change." Maddie felt thoroughly idiotic for thinking she was supposed wear all black. The other two were wearing their normal uniform, sans ties and robes. "I'll only be a minut…"

"You're fine."

Maddie looked down at her clothes, rubbing her hands along her pants briefly. "You're laughing at me."

"Only a little." James said, finally finding what he was looking for in his robes. It was a large blanket type thing. Of course, it had to have been the prettiest blanket Maddie had ever seen. It looked like flowing water mixed with all the most precious metals on earth. It looked like pure magic. Maddie could stop her hand from reaching out to touch it involuntarily. She half expected James to take it away from her before she could touch it. He didn't, he merely smirked over at Sirius. He held it in front of, allowing her run her fingers across the smooth fabric.

"What is it?" Maddie breathed out, smoothing one of the veins of silver with her middle finger.

"This is how we're going to get into the restricted section." James said, smiling widely at the look on her face.

"How?"

"It's an invisibility cloak. James has had it for years." Sirius supplied, completely thankful she didn't glare at him like she normally would have for speaking to her. "Brilliant, isn't it?"

"Absolutely."

"Perfect. You two are talking to each other again. Now we can go." James said happily, throwing his arm out to pull Maddie into place in between him and Sirius. He ignored the dark look coming from Maddie as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders, throwing the cloak over all three of them. She squirmed under his grip, elbowing him roughly before he finally released her. "We have to make sure all of us are walking together so that no parts of us get seen."

"I know how it works, Prongs." Sirius said, breath fanning out against the fabric of the cloak. "Mads is clever enough to figure it out."

Maddie said nothing, choosing instead to keep her gaze ahead. She did not like to hear him call her 'Mads'. She hadn't spoken to him since the incident on the train. He had stopped trying after she had told him to stay away from her. She was surprised, at first, he had listened to her words. He wasn't normally one for following instructions. Maddie would be lying if she wasn't taken aback by his total respect for her wishes. She had expected him to fight her more. She had expected him to do something.

"Let's go." James was either cleverly avoiding the subject, or completely oblivious. "I need my beauty sleep."

The three of them shuffled along the corridors in silence. Maddie kept her gaze firmly planted in front of her. She, in her exhausted state, was much more on edge than she normally could have been. James seemed happier than normal, which Maddie, in hindsight, should have been more suspicious of. Sirius was quiet, which Maddie couldn't find a way to complain about. It would be easier for her, for all of them, if everyone just kept their words to themselves. She didn't trust herself not to say something she would regret. She had already said more than she should have to Rory. She didn't need to make things worse with Sirius than they already were.

They were just about to turn into the library corridor when James stopped walking. Both Maddie and Sirius looked over at him. It was rather awkward, considering how close all of them were underneath the cloak.

"Why are we stopping?" Maddie asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

James said nothing. He glanced at the two of them, still sporting an oddly mischievous smile before he grabbed them roughly by their arms. Before either of them knew what was happening he shoved them into a nearby door, slamming it shut behind them. Sirius, pushing Maddie aside, wrenched at the handle, shaking the entire door. James had locked it from the outside, leaving the two of them trapped on the inside.

"I'll see you two in the morning." James' voice was muffled.

"This isn't funny." Sirius spat, shaking the door more vigorously.

"No its not." James said, slapping the door. "You two avoiding each other and feuding isn't funny. It isn't funny that you haven't spoken since we came back to school."

"James Harold Potter, you let me out now." Maddie snarled, shoving Sirius aside to bang her fist against the door.

"No. You two aren't coming out until you make up."

"I won't forget this, Potter." Maddie kicked the door viciously.

"I'm sure you two will thank me for this moment." He sounded way to happy with himself. "Eventually."

"I'm going to kill you in your sleep, Prongs."

"Right." James completely dismissed them. "I'll make sure to come and let you out with time to go shower and eat breakfast. Have fun. Keep it clean." He knocked on the old door twice before leaving the two of them in silence. Maddie thought she could heard the distinctive sound of his laughter bouncing off the walls as he walked away from the two of them, leaving them alone in the horribly uncomfortable silence that was filling the tiny space up.


End file.
